Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has rejected as "contemptuous" and "sinister" any implication that he was involved in the settlement between RTÉ and Independent TD Beverley Flynn in recovering the costs of her failed libel action.
Labour leader Pat Rabbitte said "you'd want to believe in the tooth fairy" to accept it was a coincidence as Mr Ahern faced persistent Opposition questioning in the Dáil about whether he had made a deal with Ms Flynn.
Mr Ahern insisted that "I have no knowledge, no involvement and haven't been involved in anything to do with Deputy Beverley Cooper Flynn's deal or negotiations or settlement with RTÉ, nor do I know anything about them". He added that Ms Flynn had not raised the issue with him.
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said "you were elected Taoiseach on the 14th.
"You gave your interview on the 15th," in which Mr Ahern said Ms Flynn had potential for office once she sorted out her difficulties.
Mr Kenny said "things became apparent shortly after that when RTÉ suddenly agreed to waive an amount of money that they were due".
But the Taoiseach said Mr Kenny was trying to imply that "I had some discussion, some arrangement or some understanding implicating RTÉ, with Deputy Cooper Flynn. That's what he's referring very directly."
Mr Rabbitte asked: "Why did you feel it necessary in the extraordinary fashion in which you did including hold out the prospect of office to this deputy, who was expelled from the parliamentary party and the Fianna Fáil party?" the Labour leader asked.
"After three years of stasis on the part of RTÉ, no movement on this case at all, you make your extraordinary intervention and suddenly RTÉ settles and you say to Deputy Kenny that's a coincidence."
But the Taoiseach said it was a "sinister" question from the two Opposition leaders that he or some Minister "in some way had something to do with the settlement by the legal team on RTÉ directly through the authority, general secretary or director of RTÉ. It is 100 per cent untrue."
He pointed out that it was "not a very cute issue to raise by the Opposition leaders to imply that the Taoiseach would ask a State company to involve themselves in a settlement with a member of this House of any side of this House is a contemptuous statement and I reject it".
Mr Rabbitte said: "I don't know who you're saying is claiming that you intervened with RTÉ. All I'm pointing to is the timing of an extraordinary public interview, followed a couple of days later by RTÉ caving in.
"If you believe in the tooth fairy you can say that was a coincidence but it seems to me that there's a qualitative difference between RTÉ pursuing an Independent in this House and RTÉ being required to pursue and bankrupt someone who's a member of Fianna Fáil and for whom the prospect of office is being held out."
Mr Ahern said Ms Flynn had capabilities "like a lot of my other colleagues of being able to be an office holder in the position.
"I'm in the lucky position of having 50 or 60 people capable of holding such a position . . . I'm not the leader of a small party like the deputy's, that would not even be able to fill all the officer positions."
Mr Rabbitte called on the Taoiseach to outline in full to the House the deals agreed with the Independents and questioned why Mr Ahern said he had no deal with Ms Flynn while she said she had.
Mr Ahern said his written understandings with three Independents were based on existing Government projects and Ms Flynn wanted to see all those programmes implemented.
"She has not raised any other issue or sought agreement in writing on the issues raised," he said.
