The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, has expressed himself "perfectly satisfied" that Mr Charles Haughey "never did anything wrong" with the £750,000 allowance which he received as Leader of the Opposition in the period from 1983 to 1987.
Having completed an investigation into the manner in which the £15,000-amonth allowance was disbursed, Mr Ahern said last night that he had spoken yesterday to the senior administrator in Mr Haughey's office in that period.
He was satisfied, he said, that the administrator had paid all of the money into an Allied Irish Bank account in Baggot Street, Dublin. The person referred to had previously worked for Mr Jack Lynch, but now no longer worked for the party.
The allowance had been used by the administrator to pay research staff and people in the Fianna Fail press office, settle bills for hotels, press conferences and stationery, and some helicopter flights. Any helicopter flights ferrying Mr Haughey to his island had been paid for personally by Mr Haughey.
That system had been in place during Mr Jack Lynch's period in opposition in the mid-1970s and had continued during Mr Haughey's time. The system changed when the accounting was switched to the party's headquarters in Mount Street.
Turning to allegations of financial mismanagement made by Mr Paul McKay, the former treasurer of Fianna Fail in Mr Haughey's constituency, Mr Ahern said that he did not think it would be possible for him to complete any investigation into this.
Mr Ahern said that the normal accounts for the constituency of Dublin North Central in that period "burned in a fire in 1983". The election accounts were separate. Mr McKay, who is now treasurer of the Progressive Democrats, was auditor of the normal accounts, not the election accounts.
Mr Ahern added that he wanted to give an assurance to the party throughout the State that the accounts for Dublin North Central had been handled by Mount Street since the end of Mr Haughey's period in office.
