THE Government has been forced to fable a motion of confidence in all of its members next week in an escalation of political confrontation over the failure to give effect to a Cabinet decision in relation to the reassignment of Dominic Lynch.
Fail and the Progressive put down a Dail motion of no confidence in the Taoiseach, the Attorney General and the Minister for Justice last night for "their failure to implement a Government decision of major importance" which resulted in the Special Criminal Court not being properly constituted for the past three months.
With political tensions heightening - ironically almost on the eve of the second anniversary on Monday of Labour's walk-out from the last government over another judicial appointment - a marked nervousness was evident in Fine Gael ranks.
Government strategists are confident that they can fight off the latest storm without sacrificing a political head at this juncture.
They are fearful, however, that the release of any of the 16 prisoners on the grounds of invalid detention could have political percussions in the future.
In his initial response to the joint motion, the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, said Fianna Fail were "off the rails on the road to nowhere". They could not escape from their unhealthy obsession with the circumstances of their own fall from office and from the need to go on justifying themselves after the event, he added.
Having studied the implications of the Opposition's no-confidence motion in its three most senior Fine Gael members, a Government spokesman said later that the Coalition parties would confront it "head-on in a united way".
Meanwhile, the three Coalition leaders voiced strong support for Mrs Owen's position throughout yesterday and ruled out any question of her resignation. Her Department's failure to execute a Government decision of August 1st to allow Judge Dominic Lynch to leave the Special Criminal Court cast doubt on the validity of all judicial decisions made by him and led to the release and rearrest of 16 high-security prisoners in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Mr Sean Cromien, a former Secretary of the Department of Finance, and Dr Edmund Molloy, an independent consultant in the private sector, were appointed last night to conduct the internal inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the failure to communicate the Government decision to Judge Lynch. They have been asked to complete their report by Monday week.
The Tanaiste, Mr Spring, insisted to the Taoiseach by telephone from Moscow yesterday that an independent person, outside the public service, should head the inquiry. It is reliably understood that nobody in the courts division of the Department of Justice had accepted any responsibility for the litany of administrative lapses up to last night.
There were unconfirmed reports in Leinster House last night that Judge Lynch had applied for removal from the Special Criminal Court on three occasions over the past two years and that on no occasion had he received a response. A spokeswoman for the Department of Justice was unable to confirm or deny these reports last night.
Mr Bruton vigorously defended his deputy leader, Mrs Owen, yesterday, saying that her resignation would not arise. "I wouldn't entertain it because I think Nora Owen has proven herself to be the best Minister for Justice we have had in recent times," he added.
Mr Spring said that, from what he knew of events, he saw "no need for her to resign in this situation". He also confirmed that he was having discussions with Mr Bruton in relation to "the format" of the inquiry.
The Minister for Social Welfare, Mr De Rossa, also said that the Minister should not resign. He described the debacle as an appalling mess that clearly needs to be cleared up in the Department of Justice
The inquiry, which will begin on Monday, will investigate the circumstances surrounding the failure to communicate the Government decision of August 1st
Judge Lynch, terminating his appointment as a member of the Special Criminal Court. It will also consider what procedural, administrative or other changes should be made in light of the outcome of the inquiry.
