The Revenue Commissioners collected €31.7 million in settlements between March and June of this year from builders, property developers, publicans, farmers and businessmen who failed to pay their taxes.
Independent TD and former Fine Gael minister Michael Lowry and his refrigeration services company Garuda were among the names on the 136 settlements published in the Revenue's quarterly list yesterday.
Garuda paid the Revenue €1.26 million, which includes €554,638 in interest and penalties. It was the sixth largest settlement published in the list. Mr Lowry personally made a separate settlement of €192,120. His overall tax debts, including those of his company, amounted to €1.45 million.
The largest tax settlement was paid by a building company based in Celbridge, Co Kildare. Midland Contractors of The Mill House, Main Street, Celbridge, Co Kildare, made a settlement of €2.32 million.
Husband and wife Patrick and Margaret Kerrigan, of Cortown, Kells, Co Meath, are listed as directors of the construction company, according to documents filed at the Companies' Registration Office. Another of their companies, Old Darnley Lodge, which operates the hotel of the same name in Athboy, Co Meath, made the third largest settlement, paying €1.58 million.
The Kerrigans' companies made tax settlements totalling €3.9 million, comprising €1.7 million in back taxes and €2.15 million in interest and penalties.
Former Fianna Fáil senator Eddie Bohan made the second largest settlement in the list, paying the Revenue €2 million, which included interest and penalties of €1.37 million.
He was investigated by the Revenue as part of its offshore assets inquiry. Mr Bohan told The Irish Times that the tax relates to money going back "years and years". "It is a lodgment I could not trace. I have a bad memory and it is dating back 20 years. Nobody could supply the details on it. It was 100 per cent legitimate," said Mr Bohan.
Mr Bohan (74), an auctioneer with long-standing links with the licensed trade, was a senator for 20 years until he retired from politics this year. He was the party's finance spokesman in the Seanad.
Dublin solicitor Brendan Comiskey of Avonmore, Foxrock, paid €1.39 million to the Revenue as a result of its investigation into offshore assets and bogus non-resident accounts.
Retired businessman James Walsh of Lower Park, Corbally, Limerick, made a settlement of €1.3 million. He is listed as a director of a company called Huntsworld Ventures.
Also in yesterday's list was Dr Riana O'Dwyer, a lecturer in English at NUI Galway. She paid €101,554 arising from the Revenue's investigations of offshore assets and single-premium insurance products.
Retired bank manager John Brett of Beech Mount, Piltown, Co Kilkenny, made a settlement of €97,529 as a result of the Revenue's investigations into offshore assets and bogus non-resident accounts.
Some 31 settlements totalling €9.02 million related to offshore assets, 27 (€7.27 million) concerned bogus non-resident accounts and 34 (€5.37 million) related to single-premium insurance products. Of the 136 settlements, 12 were for amounts exceeding €1 million.
