Martin admits damage caused by reaction to Cowen interview

The Minister for Foreign Affairs has admitted the controversy surrounding the Taoiseach's performance in a radio interview yesterday had damaged Ireland internationally.

Brian Cowen described claims from Fine Gael's Simon Coveney that he sounded "half-way between drunk and hungover" in the piece as "a new low in Irish politics".

Media analysis shows the story generated more than 400 articles in 400 publications in 26 countries worldwide.

Minister Micheál Martin said: "This is not good, the way it's playing out…I acknowledge that…We have to learn lessons from the entire event."