Ahern crisis - More time is needed for answers

The implications of his satisfactory mature recollection over this weekend will be critical to Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and his survival, possibly, and maybe that of the coalition government which he currently leads.

He has said he will answer questions in the Dáil on Tuesday in relation to the controversy surrounding the payments amounting to €10,000 from businessmen in Manchester more than a decade ago.

Mr Ahern must be meticulous and comprehensive in the detail which he provides to clarify what Tánaiste Michael McDowell has, more than once, characterised as “very serious matters of concern”.