Not long more me thinks before Cowen and Co. will be saying good bye to Leinster House:

Taoiseach Brian Cowen emerged shell-shocked from a raucous meeting of Fianna Fail TDs and senators last week to be told that he is now presiding over a party even more fractious and split than it was during the era of Charles Haughey.

At Fianna Fail’s final parliamentary party before the summer recess, Mr Cowen had been expecting a relatively timid affair during which he would rally his party colleagues in advance of them spending 10 weeks among their angry constituents.

But he was ambushed by a wave of anger so intense that one source said Mr Cowen “struggled to retain any sense of authority over the meeting”. The onslaught was so sustained that a senior Fianna Fail figure afterwards told the Sunday Independent that the party was now “more dysfunctional and bitterly divided than at any time since the 1980s”. In a meeting, which lasted for almost for almost three hours, the Taoiseach was challenged over the ongoing status of the judges levy; while Finance Minister Brian Lenihan was literally shouted down over his proposals to curtail politicians’ expenses, particularly when reference was made to the need to “avoid a Westminster-style scandal”.

In a chaotic meeting, the Taoiseach had to resort to shouting on several occasions but he still “visibly struggled” to control the angry mood of the meeting. One source said: “Cowen was barking and shouting, but he was simply ignored. He was on the verge of losing control and Lenihan looked like a ghost.”

Such was the level of backbench discontent, even well-known rebel Fianna Fail TDs were said to be “shocked” by a mood, which one described as being “worse than anything I’ve seen”.

The TD added: “It wasn’t as much what was said as the mood. We’re in a more divided state than even the Haughey era.” More worryingly for Mr Cowen, a Government minister told the Sunday Independent: “We’re so divided that there are five wings in the party now.” The different factions are said to include supporters of Mr Cowen, supporters of former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, those who think Fianna Fail need a “strong man” like Justice Minister Dermot Ahern, an “anyone but Dermot Ahern” group, and a cabal of mainly Munster supporters around Foreign Affairs Minister Micheal Martin, whose political future may rest on a majority ‘Yes’ vote in the Lisbon II referendum.

If there is any good news for Mr Cowen it is that the growing number of TDs who have lost all faith in his leadership are less than impressed by the alternatives. One veteran TD said: “At least in the Eighties it was the Haughey camp versus Dessie. What we have now is factions, but no real leaders.” There is also increasing angst between the more experienced wing of the party and a coterie of younger TDs, whom it is believed are being groomed for promotion.

Significantly, there is unanimous support among the FF backbench TDs for the publication of the An Bord Snip Nua report which may force Mr Cowen into a rare U-turn.

Up until Friday, the Taoiseach said that the report would not be published. But a succession of Fianna Fail TDs is now demanding the public be informed.

- JOHN DRENNAN (Irish Independent)