The Minister for Transport, Mr Cullen, yesterday criticised the decision of the former Aer Rianta chairman, Mr Noel Hanlon, to present €9,000 Cartier watches to himself and four other former Aer Rianta directors. However, he said he did not know if reports that two other watches were also presented were true.
Mr Cullen said that he did not approve of the gifts being presented. "At this stage, I just don't know [if seven watches were presented] - obviously I wasn't very happy - I don't think anybody was very happy with what happened in the first place," said Mr Cullen while performing his first official function as Minister for Transport in Cashel yesterday.
According to a report in the Sunday Independent, seven boxes, each believed to contain a Cartier watch, were brought into the dining room of a restaurant in Howth last month at a farewell dinner for outgoing members of the now defunct Aer Rianta board.
Mr Hanlon said only five watches were presented at the dinner and described as "disgraceful" the publicity surrounding his decision to present himself and four other former Aer Rianta directors with the five watches.
