The Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell, took questions from journalists for just one minute yesterday morning on the PD leadership controversy.
He refused to take any further queries and would not answer any questions on whether he had claimed there was a pact between himself and the Tánaiste on the PD leadership.
Journalists: There are reports in today's papers that there is a leadership struggle in the Progressive Democrats. What is your word on that?
Mr McDowell: "There is no leadership struggle going on in the Progressive Democrats. Mary Harney and myself are absolutely and completely united about where the party is going and I'll be having lunch with her in a couple of hours' time and there is no leadership struggle of any kind."
Journalists: Are you of the view that there had been an arrangement that she might step down before the next election as leader?
Mr McDowell: "I don't want to comment at all in relation to the party's internal matters, but I want to say to all of you and everybody out there: there is no leadership struggle in the Progressive Democrats. No threat was ever made to me and, secondly, I also want to say that I have never asked Mary Harney to step aside as leader."
Journalists: Did you raise the issue that you might have an understanding about the leadership?
Mr McDowell: "I just want to say there is no leadership struggle, no issue. We're united completely as a party. We are going into the next election on a strategy decided at our meeting last Tuesday and, you know, suggestions to the contrary are incorrect."