A witness told the High Court this morning she had been "very badly advised" by Ms Beverley Cooper-Flynn TD and felt "badly let down" by her.
Ms Joy Hawe was continuing her evidence on the 13th day of the the TD’s libel case against RTÉ, following an hour’s delay getting to court due to the bad weather.
Ms Hawe, who owned a boutique in Enniskillen in Co Fermanagh for 30 years, invested in a CMI personal portfolio following financial advice from Ms Cooper-Flynn.
She told the court she was "horrified" to learn of the tax problem with her investment in June 1998.
She said she was "terribly stressed out", developed asthma and had cancer-related surgery as a result of the impact of the revelation.
Ms Hawe told the court she was targeted by NIB to invest in the scheme which facilitated tax evasion and was told by Ms Cooper-Flynn her money would be "safe from tax".
Following the RTÉ broadcast in June 1998 in which Ms Cooper-Flynn said she was libelled Ms Hawe said she made a tax settlement with the Revenue but NIB did "nothing" to help her.
Asked whether she agreed with Ms Cooper-Flynn’s earlier testimony that they did not discuss revenue, Ms Hawe insisted: "It did come into the conversation."
Ms Cooper-Flynn is suing RTÉ journalist Mr Charlie Bird and retired farmer Mr James Howard of Wheaton Hall in Drogheda in Co Louth.
She claims she was libelled in broadcasts on RTÉ between June 19th 1998 and July 1st 1998 and words used on the programme claimed she had instigated a scheme the object of which was the evasion of the lawful payment of tax.
The case continues.