Make-or-break day for power-sharing deal

Prospective coalition partners Fianna Fáil and the Green Party face a make or break day of talks today as they strive to agree a formula for government.

Even though they have been locked in intensive negotiations for five days, the parties have failed to nail down a power sharing deal.

The two sides are due back at Government Buildings at 10am this morning.

The negotiations were suspended just before 9pm last night with the Greens appearing somewhat downbeat about the prospects of resolving the substantive issues.

Although they said some issues had been resolved, both sides remained tight lipped about what the major stumbling blocks are.

Leaving the talks last night outgoing TD Dan Boyle warned: “It seems we have agreed a lot but after five days it also seems we have agreed nothing.”

If a deal is struck today it must be brought to a Green Party convention on Sunday where two-thirds of the 800 delegates must back the plan.

The Fianna Fáil delegation includes Brian Cowen, Seamus Brennan and Noel Dempsey, with John Gormley, Dan Boyle, and party secretary Donall Geoghegan representing the Greens.

Fianna Fáil is believed to be seeking to form a coalition with a comfortable majority made up of the Green Party and their former partners the Progressive Democrats before inviting a number of independents.

The Green Party's Dan Boyle spoke to reporters on the way in to talks at government buildings this morning.