The Government will today resist an attempt by Fine Gael to censure the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, following her controversial claim at the weekend that Mr Charles Haughey should be convicted and jailed.
While Ms Harney insisted yesterday that her comments were made in the context of last week's Moriarty Tribunal revelations, and not Mr Haughey's pending trial for obstructing the McCracken Tribunal, Fine Gael said it would be asking the Dail to suspend ordinary business to consider censuring the PD leader.
A spokesman for the Tanaiste said last night there was inconsistency in FG's position.
"One day they are castigating Mr Haughey and the next day they are acting as cheerleaders for his defence team", he said.
Sources across all parties ail, agreed last night that if Mr Haughey's legal team succeeded in its attempt to move a motion in the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court tomorrow to have the obstruction charges struck out or postponed indefinitely because of the comments, it would prove seriously damaging to Ms Harney.
The Dail censure attempt and tomorrow's court application by Mr Haughey's lawyers follow a week in which Ms Harney has been at the centre of controversy over her endorsement of the appointment of former Supreme Court judge, Mr Hugh O'Flaherty, as vice-president of the European Investment Bank.
It was accepted in political circles last night that the Ceann Comhairle will not allow an adjournment of the Dail to consider a censure motion. A Labour Party spokesman said even if it did succeed it would not support the Fine Gael move as the publicity could further prejudice Mr Haughey's trial.
While Fine Gael was insisting yesterday that its legal advice was that Ms Harney's comments were seriously prejudicial to Mr Haughey's case, sources in Government circles tried to maintain that the judge would not entertain this view.
A measure of the seriousness with which Ms Harney views the remarks, however, can be gleaned from the fact that she took legal and political advice on the matter before qualifying her position publicly yesterday. It is believed that the Attorney General, Mr Michael McDowell, was among those who advised her.
Speaking later to RTE she rejected claims that comments she made about Charles Haughey could prejudice his trial.
"Anyone who looked at the record will see I wasn't talking about any proceedings before the courts nor would I. I was asked my opinion by the journalist in relation to the evidence given last week at the Moriarty Tribunal particularly the opening statement by Mr Healy.
"I gave my honest view to that. I was further asked if I believed because of somebody's age they should be excused and I said no I think people should be accountable regardless of their age," she said.
Ms Harney added: "I am well aware of due process and know what is involved in due process."
The Fine Gael Deputy leader, Ms Nora Owen, said last night the Tanaiste should have known better than to make the comments she made.
"If Mary Harney thinks it's alright for the deputy Prime Minister of this country to say what she said, Fine Gael fundamentally disagrees with her."
Ms Owen said it was Ms Harney who was playing politics with a judicial matter "when she, for her own narrow political purposes last Saturday, chose to make a populist comment that only could be and has been construed as referring to a current criminal court case."