THE ONGOING talks on a revised programme for government are now unlikely to conclude until very late on the eve of the special meeting of the Green Party in the RDS on Saturday.
A spokesman for the Greens said yesterday that the meeting on Saturday would still go ahead and that both parties were convinced the talks could conclude on Friday night.
However, it is understood that while some progress has been made in the talks, there are still a number of major issues, including education and political reform, that need to be concluded.
It is also understood that the document that emerges may be relatively short, between 20 and 30 pages, and contain only fresh commitments that have been agreed by both parties.
The main focus of the document will be on job creation with the Greens emphasising the role of the smart economy, which it claims can create many thousands of so-called "green collar" jobs.
It is understood that there was some friction between both sets of negotiators earlier in the week but that talks have progressed more smoothly in the past two days. "There is a feeling that time is short and a sense that the final document may not be drafted until the early hours of Saturday morning," said the spokesman.
The Greens' special meeting will begin in the RDS on Saturday morning. The debate on the new programme for government will dominate the morning session, with members discussing the Nama legislation in the afternoon.
The votes on both key issues will be announced at about 7pm on Saturday. The Green Party leadership needs two-thirds backing for a new programme, while those opposed to Nama within the Greens will need to attract two-thirds support if the party is to officially reject the Government's preferred approach.
Green Party leader and Minister for the Environment John Gormley yesterday introduced the new Planning Bill in the Seanad. Party strategists said the new legislation, which will impose core restrictions on local authorities in terms of planning and zoning, was significant and would underline the influence the Greens have had in government.
Meanwhile, Galway West Fianna Fáil TD Frank Fahey said the role of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) should be reviewed as part of the new programme for government.
Mr Fahey, who is chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Transport, said the NPWS "has a right to object" to development projects if they posed a threat to the country's natural environment.
But there needed to be a change to the way that right was applied. Mr Fahey said there should be an onus on the NPWS "to provide a workable alternative" when objecting to infrastructure projects.