The Government will not announce a date for the abortion referendum until after a High Court case on Friday, a Government spokesman has said.
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Members of the Alliance for a No Vote (ANV)
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The Cabinet met earlier today to discuss the timing of the referendum and a date at the beginning of March is expected.
However, the date will not be made public until after a ruling on Friday in a High Court case against the referendum taken by group of Dublin students.
A recent Irish Times/MRBI opinion poll has shown that there is not broad consensus on the abortion issue.
The Progressive Democrats have expressed doubts about the wisdom of another referendum, saying they do not want yet another divisive debate on the issue.
But, Mr Ahern has said his lengthy round of consultations is designed to avoid a divisive campaign.
Meanwhile a protest was held again today by the Alliance for a No Vote (ANV).
At a press conference after the demonstration Labour party spokeswoman on health, Ms Liz McManus, said the government "paralyses" over deciding upon a date showed that the government had failed to reach a consensus.
She called for plans to hold the referendum to be dropped and said: "Restricting the right to life of pregnant women by excluding the risk of suicide is unconscionable. The reality of the situation is that the government will put women's lives at risk."
Among those represented at the pro-choice group were: Fine Gael TD Ms Monica Barnes, Councillor Mr Ciaran Cuffe (Green Party), Dr Juliet Bressan (Doctors for Choice) and Ms Catherine Naji (ANV).