THERE WAS a sense of vindication evident in former taoiseach Bertie Ahern’s brief reaction to winning his High Court challenge against rulings made by the Mahon tribunal.
According to Mr Ahern, the judgment, which ruled in his favour on all three grounds, was one that “speaks for itself”. The court found Mr Ahern’s contribution to a Dáil debate in 2006 was privileged and could not be referred to during his questioning.
It also ruled Mr Ahern was entitled to claim legal privilege in respect of advice given to him by a banking expert. The tribunal conceded the third ground – a claim by Mr Ahern that he was entitled to have sight of the financial calculations the tribunal used when arriving at sterling amounts.
However, the Labour Party last night claimed Mr Ahern took the action as a delaying tactic rather than because he wanted to uphold TDs’ and Senators’ constitutional rights of privilege. Senator Alex White, justice spokesman for the party, asserted that the tactic had worked only to a degree.
“It could not prevent his exit from office much earlier than he had planned, which was largely due to the determination of Labour and other Opposition parties to hold him to account politically,” claimed Senator White.
“Given that the tribunal has access to its own information and the fact that many statements made by the taoiseach in the Dáil were also repeated outside, I do not believe that this judgment will have a significant impact on the tribunal’s further inquiries into Mr Ahern’s affairs,” he added.
