THE former Taoiseach, Mr Albert Reynolds, was accused of seeking a "one sided trial" in the High Court in London yesterday on the sixth day of his libel action - against the Sunday Times' newspaper.
The exchanges came during his cross examination by counsel for the newspaper, Mr James Price QC, about Mr Spring's reasons for leading the Labour Party out of the coalition with Fianna Fail in November, 1994.
He asked that a section of the Dail record dealing with these events be made available to the jury. Counsel for Mr Reynolds, Lord Gareth Williams QC, objected, but Mr Justice French ruled that the jury should have access to the document in order to follow the argument.
"There is an objection from your side every single time I seek to put a document before the jury in an attempt to get the full truth," said Mr Price. "That's a comment," said Mr Justice French.
Mr Price continued, addressing Mr Reynolds: "You know that I cannot compel a witness to come here from the Republic of Ireland any more than I can compel a witness to come from the Republic of China. So you are absolutely safe."
Mr Reynolds: "I don't know. I never knew anyone going into a trial safe, that they knew what the verdict would be."
Mr Price: "So what you're aiming for is a completely one sided trial, is it not?
Mr Reynolds: "I abide by the rules."
Mr Price: "In which you have all the witnesses you want and I have none. Is that fair?"
Mr Reynolds: "I carry out (sic) according to the rules and I can't comment on it."
At this stage, Lord Williams objected to this line of questioning and the discussion of Mr Spring's withdrawal from the government continued.
Earlier, Mr Price had put it repeatedly to Mr Reynolds that Mr Spring felt he (Mr Reynolds) had misled the Dail about when he had known about the Duggan case. This was a case in which another person had been extradited earlier on paedophile charges and this had cast a different light on the delay in the Attorney General's Office in seeking the extradition of Father Brendan Smyth to face paedophile charges in the North.
That delay led to questions about the suitability of Mr Harry Whelehan for the presidency of the High Court, to which Mr Reynolds had appointed him, and eventual to die fall of the government.
Mr Reynolds said that at 10.22 a.m. on the Wednesday, an agreement was signed for the continuation of the government. At 10.30 Parliament opened, and it was adjourned at 11 a.m. The new Attorney General, Mr Fitzsimons, received a phone call from Mr Spring, who asked him one question - when was Mr Reynolds told of the existence of the Duggan case. Mr Fitzsimons said on Monday.
"Mr Spring came to your office to explain the reason why he could not support you in the Dail despite thee agreement that morning. He said what you told the Dail was untrue," Mr Price said to Mr Reynolds.
Spring came into my office with three others and asked, `When were you informed of the existence of the Duggan case?' I answered him, `On Monday,' and then tried to explain the circumstances from all through Monday and Tuesday. I didn't get very far in my explanations because they were not very interested in listening.
"Mrs Geoghegan Quinn, the Justice Minister, made some remark to the effect, `Well, what are you looking for?' to which Mr Quinn, the deputy leader of the Labour Party, responded, `We have come for a head, yours or Harry's. It does not appear we are getting Harry's'. That is my recall, in general terms, of what went on.
Mr Price repeatedly put it to Mr Reynolds that Mr Spring had said publicly that he felt that Mr Reynolds had misled the Dail, and therefore the Labour Party could not support him.
"No," replied Mr Reynolds. "I don't know what he had in his mind."
"He said again and again publicly this was the reason," said Mr Price.
"He had a very bad weekend politically, where his vote had collapsed in two by elections," said Mr Reynolds.
To the question put several times: "Are you prepared to accept the reason (for withdrawing support) was he felt he had been deceived?"
Mr Reynolds replied: "The only person who knew what was in Mr Spring's mind was Mr Spring."
Earlier, Mr Reynolds had rejected a suggestion from Mr Price that on the days in question the government had been in a state of confusion and disarray.
Mr Price also questioned him - about differences between the draft of his speech to the Dail on Wednesday, drawn up by Mr Fitzsimons, and the version he actually delivered.
Mr Fitzsimons's draft had included a section which said: "I am not impugning in any way the honour and integrity of the former Attorney General," according to Mr Price.
"You left that out, didn't you? The bit about Harry Whelehan being of good character," he asked Mr Reynolds. "I never said otherwise," said the former Taoiseach. "I'm sure that elsewhere in the speech I included it."
Mr Price went on to say that two other passages in Mr Fitzsinons's draft of the speech which referred to the good character of Mr Whelehan had also been omitted by Mr Reynolds.
Mr Reynolds replied: "When I finished (the draft) I passed it on to Dr Martin Mansergh."
Mr Price: "That is not true, is it? Dr Mansergh was not involved in any way in this section of the speech. He was told not to alter it."
Mr Reynolds: "It may be Noel Dempsey."
Mr Price: "Are you trying to find someone to blame?"
Mr Reynolds: "I am not. I am trying to recollect as to who actually put it in that form.
"I can't be expected to remember the minutiae of everything that happened two years ago. I did not sit down personally and write it."
Mr Price: "So it's someone else's fault?"
Mr Reynolds: "I didn't draft it but I take responsibility for it."
He said that on Tuesday he had made a number of references to Mr Whelehan's character and integrity.
"But by Wednesday you were asking him to resign. It was a very different situation. On Tuesday you defended him to the hilt. On Wednesday you said, `Everything I said about him was wrong. I should not have appointed him'."
Failing to get Mr Reynolds's agreement on his understanding of the two drafts, Mr Price then moved on to discussing the Labour Party's withdrawal from the government.