Don´t forget that Sinn Fein opposed Nice as well.  This is the opening shot in a negotiation Sinn Fein do not have a mandate to take part in.  It sets the scene for their rejection of whatever Cowen comes back with.  Sinn Fein don´t want a success in this negotiation - they want a failure they can use as a stick to beat Cowen with at the next election - and a way forward to become the official opposition in Ireland.  They might well succed in this objective - as Fine Gael - and to an extent, labour, hardly have a raison détre anymore - they are but clinging on by force of historical memory that is rapidly fading.

gotta run - i,m on the move - sorry for hit and run comment.

"It's a mystery to me - the game commences, For the usual fee - plus expenses, Confidential information - it's in my diary..."