MR Michael McDowell TD, speaking on RTE radio, said there had been calls for the resignations of the British home secretary and the British attorney general on the basis of remarks reported in the Irish press and attributed to government sources, saying the fault lay with the British.

"In The Irish Times of April 15th, published shortly after this cock up in the district court, you will see Government sources emphatically denying this and I don't believe that The Irish Times invented those quotes and attributed them to Government or Garda sources.

"I believe that the Government emphatically laid the blame at the British door and if you look at the quotes in The Irish Times they are unequivocal that the fault lay with Britain, not that it didn't lie with the Attorney General.

"The Government sources were specific and clear that the British were at fault and that the British had not supplied the proper documentation and that the British should have known better than to give us photocopies.

Mr McDowell said he believed that, at the time the sources were speaking to The Irish Times saying the fault lay with the British they knew this was not the case.

Mr Jim Higgins TD, also speaking on RTE, said he was "not aware, and I can put hand on heart on this, I am not aware who the senior individual, the person who has purportedly made those comments".

As far as he was concerned, no one speaking on behalf of the Government had pointed the finger at the British. He said he wished someone would name the source who said the finger of blame pointed in the British direction.

Mr McDowell said he assumed The Irish Times would now name the source quoted in its April 5th edition.