Plans to introduce an honours system to acknowledge the achievements of people who have rendered distinguished service to the State have been abandoned by the Taoiseach.
The Government Chief Whip, Mr Seamus Brennan, wrote to the main opposition parties earlier this week informing them that Mr Ahern had decided not to "pursue the matter any further" after Fine Gael had indicated its opposition to the idea.
The model for the Government's honours system is outlined in records released to The Irish Times under the Freedom of Information Act. A Cabinet discussion paper proposed a system which would see recipients receive a gold medal and a scroll but no title, which is prohibited for Irish citizens under the Constitution.
The discussion paper, drawn up by officials in the Taoiseach's Office, noted that "an honours scheme should be based on objective selection and evaluation and operate transparently". The public would be entitled to nominate people or groups to an independent advisory board.
This board, which would have 10 to 12 members, would be "representative of key sections of the community". It would make recommendations for honours to the Government. But, under the Government's proposed scheme, the Government itself would also have the right to select award-winners without reference to the board.
The honours would be conferred by the President, acting on the advice of the Government.
A briefing note prepared for the Taoiseach for Dail questions last month noted that "there would appear at the present time to be political will to proceed with this matter". Officials at the Department of the Taoiseach were asked to make presentations to the parliamentary parties of the main political parties on the outline for the civic honours system.
The Labour Party indicated its willingness to look favourably at establishing an honours system. However, there was surprise in Government circles when it was informed last week that a majority of the members of the Fine Gael front bench had decided that "an honours system was foreign to our traditions and essentially was more trouble than it was worth".
Senator Maurice Manning, who was nominated by Fine Gael to deal with the subject, said last night that if an honours system "had been around in the 1980s many of those honoured would be the Ansbacher account-holders today".
Without cross-party support, the Taoiseach, who is said to be disappointed at the outcome, was unwilling to proceed with the plan for the honours system. Mr Brennan described the outcome as "a pity". He said there was "a lot of prejudice and top-of-the-head responses, which is a pity as other republics have such awards".