FINE Gael may have ruled out coalescing with Sinn Féin in government but the party has formed alliances with Sinn Féin on at least two local authorities to secure control of the councils.

Fianna Fáil and Labour have also entered into power-sharing agreements with Sinn Féin on a number of local authorities since the local elections on 5 June.

The arrangements have been made as county and town councils have been electing mayors, deputy mayors and various committee members at their post-election meetings in recent days. Parties have also been arranging voting pacts to decide who will hold the balance of power and secure majority groupings on various councils.

The new deals have been made despite the political storm caused by Fine Gael's director of elections, Frank Flannery, during the recent election campaign.

In an interview last month, Flannery indicated that his party would be prepared at some point to discuss cooperating with Sinn Féin so that it could make up a coalition government with Fine Gael and Labour.

Flannery no longer holds the position of director of elections after his comments caused embarrassment for Kenny and the party in the crucial final days of the election campaign. But he is still director of organisation within the party at its Mount Street headquarters.

Party leader Enda Kenny distanced himself from the remarks and Flannery was moved from his position to a different role. But this has not prevented deals being done at local level in recent days.

A spokeswoman for Sinn Féin said the party has entered into a "power-sharing pact with Fine Gael and a number of independents on Letterkenny town council."

Fine Gael's Jimmy Kav­an­agh and Sinn Féin's Gerry McMonagle have come to an agreement with independent councilors Jim Lynch and Jimmy Harte and Tom Crossan from the Letterkenny Residents Party to have a voting majority on the nine-seat council.

"Sinn Féin has done a deal with Fine Gael on Boyle town council which gives the party a chair of committee and membership of a joint policing committee," the SF spokeswoman added. FG councillors Jan Flanagan, Christy Brady, Keith Suffin and Marie Egan Paul struck the deal with SF's Jane Suffin.

Elsewhere, Sinn Féin has done a deal with Labour and two independents on the division of committees on Navan town council and the party has entered into a technical pact with Fianna Fáil in Youghal, Co Cork.