A senior source in Fine Gael confirmed this weekend that the PD politician had slipped from a poll-topping outcome in a survey taken earlier this year to being positioned in a battle for his political survival in a new private poll commissioned by the party.

The poll, undertaken in the last fortnight, shows Fine Gael, Labour and the Greens each taking a seat in Dublin South East, with Fianna Fail and the PDs battling for the final position.

The information in the poll is expected to be used this week by Fine Gael advisers to knock the idea of the party running a second candidate in Dublin South East.

Meanwhile, a nephew of former Labour leader Ruairi Quinn is being considered as a running mate for Eamon Gilmore in Dun Laoghaire.

Labour's organisation committee will this week be asked to add barrister Oisin Quinn to the party's ticket in the five-seat constituency.

Quinn was elected to Dublin city council in 2004.

The Dun Laoghaire position was recently declined by Trinity College law lecturer, Ivana Bacik.

The committee is also expected to add councillor Alex White to the Labour ticket in Dublin South despite strong opposition from Aidan Culhane, who has already been selected.

The Labour party organisation in Dublin South last week passed a motion supporting the idea of a single candidate strategy.