A new amount of money lodged by the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, in the early 1990s was raised yesterday at the Mahon tribunal. Colm Keenaand Fiona Gartlandreport.
Near the end of another long day of questioning about his finances, tribunal counsel Des O'Neill SC mentioned a £5,000 cheque that Mr Ahern used to open two new accounts with the Irish Permanent Building Society in January 1994.
Mr O'Neill said the £5,000 had been the subject of correspondence between the Revenue and Mr Ahern's accountant, Des Peelo.
A spokesman for the Taoiseach last night said he would not be commenting on the proceedings at the tribunal.
Mr Ahern's evidence did not conclude yesterday as expected and he will have to return to the tribunal in the New Year.
The cheque was mentioned by Mr O'Neill while he was questioning Mr Ahern about a payment from NCB which formed part of a "dig-out" Mr Ahern has said occurred in December 1993, and which is being investigated by the tribunal.
Mr O'Neill said the then managing director of NCB, Pádraic O'Connor, had told the tribunal he did not intend the money from his firm to go to Mr Ahern, but rather made the payment following a request from Mr Ahern's associate, former Fianna Fáil fundraiser Des Richardson.
He said Mr O'Connor's evidence was that Mr Richardson said he was seeking £5,000 contributions from a number of stockbroking firms for Mr Ahern's constituency expenses, and that Mr O'Connor authorised the payment in this context.
Mr Ahern was asked if he knew of any other £5,000 payments by stockbroking firms made to his constituency operation in and around 1993 and 1994.
Mr Ahern said the only other such payment he could find was a £5,000 payment from Davy Stockbrokers that was made at the time of the 1992 general election. He added that he did not look after the "constituency account".
Mr O'Neill then asked if he could identify the source of the £5,000 cheque used to open the two building society accounts in January 1994. "Not without checking," said Mr Ahern.
Mr O'Neill said that in fact Mr Ahern had checked, not only in response to the tribunal's inquiries last year "but also in relation to your dealings with the Revenue Commissioners". Mr Ahern agreed.
Mr O'Neill said a record of the cheque had not been found and so "we don't know who it was who contributed the £5,000 which was lodged one month after the donation was made to you of £5,000 by Mr O'Connor." Mr Ahern agreed.
Mr O'Neill said the matter had been considered in two letters sent by Mr Peelo to the Revenue but the content of the letters was not disclosed before the hearing ended.
Earlier Mr Ahern was asked about Mr O'Connor's evidence that he did not consider himself to be a close personal friend of Mr Ahern's in 1993, and that the payment from NCB was intended as a political rather than a party donation.
Mr Ahern said: "I know Mr O'Connor. I know Mr O'Connor's family. I know a lot of Mr O'Connor's friends. He was in my office endlessly when he was chairman of NCB . . . I went to his own house. Now if years later Mr O'Connor wants to disown me and he doesn't know me, well that's his bloody business not mine."
Mr Ahern said in January 1994 he personally thanked Mr O'Connor for the payment. "I thanked him on the basis that he gave me a personal donation.
"He said that when he thanked Mr O'Connor "he knew precisely what I was talking about . . . I want to tell you, on oath, that I got the money on December 27th, £22,500, and £5,000 of that I was told came from Pádraic O'Connor, who was a friend of mine."
Mr O'Neill said Mr O'Connor's evidence was that he was never thanked or approached by Mr Ahern in relation to the payment. "I totally reject that. I did thank him," said Mr Ahern.