‘No prospect’ of Labour chairman being ousted

Sources close to Labour leader Eamon Gilmore have said there is “no prospect whatsoever” of the party chairman, Colm Keaveney, being removed from his position.

There is an “acceptance” by Labour leadership that it will not be able to oust Mr Keaveney at today’s meeting of the national executive where Mr Gilmore will come face to face with the rebel TD.

The source rejected claims by the Galway East TD that he was being “cajoled, bulled, and harangued” out of the position because he lost the party whip after voting against the budget.

A report will be presented at today’s meeting outlining the implications for the internal workings of the party of having an opposition TD chairing the national executive which discusses the party’s strategy in Government.

There is no mechanism for the party leadership to remove him from the position without expelling him as a member, which could backfire badly on Mr Gilmore.

Mr Keaveney said “under no circumstances” would he step down and warned Mr Gilmore that he “would want to be cognisant of the fact that the grassroots of the Labour Party would not stand for any undemocratic conduct of the leadership with respect to the chair of the party”.

He was anticipating that the leader “would explore whatever avenue possible to ensure my removal from the party”.

“From day one my election has been a contentious issue for Eamon Gilmore, he did everything possible to ensure that I wasn’t elected chair of the Labour Party,” he told RTÉ radio.

He said the party leader had “commissioned a legal report to be presented at the executive with a view of exploring suggestions with respect of my chairmanship of the party”.

At its last meeting, on Dec 19, the party’s legal adviser, Richard Humphreys, was asked to draw up the report. Sources said this was not a legal document but rather a look at the implications of the current situation for the “internal administrative workings of the party”.

Mr Gilmore is understood to believe he is not in a position to present a political report today because there will be an opposition TD present. Any suggestion this meeting is about drumming anybody out of the party “is well off the mark”, said a source.