The Taoiseach has accused those who exaggerate the weaknesses of the economy of damaging national morale.

Brian Cowen was responding to a call from Labour's Pat Rabbitte to call a general election.

Mr Cowen told the Dáil the Government was determined to bring forward a four-year economic plan and a budget that would be important to the country.

“If the deputy believes, in the context of the scale of the challenges that face us at present, that a further election based on the divergence of policy that is emerging on the other side of the House would give us an outcome that would provide certainty, he is a better man than me.”

Mr Rabbitte said the Dáil now resembled the “last days of the Roman empire”.

He added: “Would it not be better for the Taoiseach to get into his car, go to the Áras and dissolve the Dáil, and let us return some certainty and confidence to the governance of this country?”

Mr Rabbitte also accused Mr Cowen of doing awful damage to the morale of people.

Earlier, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny has called on the Taoiseach to instruct Anglo Irish Bank to take a civil action against former employees who failed to disclose encrypted passwords for documents sought by investigators.

Mr Kenny claimed there was no urgency by Government in the pursuit of reckless activity in banks, following media reports that the investigation was being delayed by “attempts by former Anglo Irish Bank employees to obstruct the course of justice and not to give the information regarding the encrypted files that many of them have”.

But Mr Cowen said the State could not interfere in the conduct of an inquiry, which he described as “the biggest investigation in the history of the State”.

The question was raised in the wake of a High Court hearing where it emerged that Anglo Irish Bank did not have the necessary passwords to gain access to some encrypted documents and the failure of former employees to supply those passwords was delaying the investigation.

Mr Kenny said the Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern had told the Dáil last month that it would be an offence under the law if information owned by the bank was being withheld.

“You own Anglo Irish Bank,” he said to the Taoiseach. “This information in these encrypted files is critical and may be the vital information in respect of prosecuting people for criminal or illegal activities. Why have you not instructed Anglo Irish Bank to take a civil action and bring these people to court so that this information can be made available to the public?”

Mr Cowen said that “under our laws and Constitution” the investigation “is conducted by an independent prosecutor service”.

He added that “all of the House would like to see these matters brought to a conclusion as quickly as possible. It is not correct to say that the Government is in a position to interfere in relation to the conduct of the investigation.

There are rules in relation to Central Bank acts and other acts that regulate banking legislation. There is a very thorough examination under way. The Garda Commissioner said recently that he expects further progress in relation to it shortly.”