Responding to Sargent's comments in the Dail last week . . . when he referred to "dodgy builders in governments like the minister of state, Deputy Fahey" . . . Lenihan said that Sargent was indulging in "pompous outrage" and "insinuating and hinting" without producing any evidence against the junior justice minister.

"I do believe the Green party leader has abused the privilege of the house, " he added.

Lenihan called on Sargent to produce evidence or withdraw his comments. "What has he [Minister Fahey] been accused of? It's not clear what the Green party leader is saying.

There is no proof of any impropriety and I would object regardless of what party the person was in. The Dail should not be a school for scandal, " Lenihan told the Sunday Tribune.

The minister said that Sargent had gone "way beyond what was normal in a parliamentary setting" in his remarks on Fahey and that he had a "moral onus to stand up [what he is saying] or back off. If you are saying something like that, you have to be able to back it up. There is no evidence of any transgression." Lenihan added that it had "never been a crime to make money or invest in property".

Sargent's position was particularly "incongruous", Lenihan said, given reports that the Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPO) . . . the watchdog responsible for monitoring ethics among politicians . . . had exhibited no interest in beginning an inquiry of its own.

"If he is going to make serious charges, he should go to SIPO first and make the substance of his complaint public. To date, he has produced no substance, " he added.

Unrepentant However, Sargent remained unrepentant yesterday. "It doesn't give me any pleasure to hold someone to account but it would be remiss of me to let it pass, given the key issues involved, " he said. Too many people "have come to me saying they have suffered" from decisions made by Minister Fahey, he added.

Sargent stressed that he had never accused Fahey of a transgression.

"What I said was that he had been politically quite damaging in the way he had operated as marine minister [in the cabinet between 2000-02]."

He pinpointed Fahey's 'fishing vessels lost at sea' scheme, which is under investigation by the Ombudsman; the manner in which tonnage was allocated to the large factory ships; the way the Irish fish industry has suffered because of soured relations with the European Commission during Fahey's tenure; and what he claimed were the "reckless" decisions made in relation to Rossport and the Corrib gas pipeline.

Sargent also said the "issue of his declaration of interests [in relation to his large property portfolio] seems to be under question. Likewise, the large property portfolio makes it difficult for him to concentrate on the responsibilities of government. The questions were more for the Taoiseach than for Frank Fahey and is he allowing these to be the standards set [for his government]?"

Despite an intervention by the Ceann Comhairle of the Dail, Sargent said he will not be withdrawing his "dodgy builders" remark. He insisted it was a political charge against the whole government, stressing that he used the plural.

"The government can claim collectively to be dodgy builders. If you look at infrastructure projects, the cost overruns, and how projects weren't finished to the proper standards; the lower insulation standards [maintained by the government for house building] and how management companies were allowed continue their rip-off. If there was ever to be a general description [of this government], it would be of dodgy building."

The Green party is continuing to build a file on Fahey's business interests, which it intends to submit to the SIPO. "We are accumulating quite an amount of information that points to political misjudgements, " Sargent said.

'Scrupulous' Fahey turned down a request from the Sunday Tribune for an interview, but made his first public comments on the controversies surrounding him in recent weeks to RTE's Five Seven Live on Friday. He defended his multi-million-euro property portfolio and said he had been "very scrupulous" in complying with his ethical requirements in respect of his property and "everything else".

Fahey said he was "absolutely satisfied" that he had done nothing wrong and was not concerned about the possibility that his affairs could be investigated by the Standards in Public Office Commission.

"If we are to go down the road that some people are suggesting, then nobody who is in business, or nobody who is developing a property, can get involved in politics if somebody like me can't be involved in developing a property, " the minister said. He added that his portfolio had been built up "over the years in a very transparent way" and that he had "probably 90% borrowing on what properties I have".