Lowry explains financial and commercial affairs to Moriarty Tribunal

Former Minister Michael Lowry has spent the afternoon in the witness box at the Moriarty tribunal. He has been explaining his financial and commercial affairs, which were not previously dealt with or fully explained by the McCracken Tribunal. Mr. Lowry acknowledged that his accounting previous to his resignation as Minister in 1996 was "haphazard" and caused him a lot of difficulty since then.

Michael Lowry said that, when his financial affairs first came into the public domain three years ago, he called in his accountants to review his books. He said that he wanted to make amends and put the past behind him. Michael Lowry had been asked by the tribunal team to clarify a number of unexplained payments and lodgements. First into the witness box was his accountant, Denis O'Connor. In a trawl of 10 years of Michael Lowry's accounts, he managed to explain most dealings.

£15,000, which was not accounted for by McCracken, was established as a bonus from Ben Dunne for work done by Michael Lowry's refrigeration company Streamline enterprises. Giving evidence in the afternoon Mr. Lowry spoke of how, in 1995, he sold off antiques and paintings from his home in Holycross in County Tipperary to well-known businessman Patrick Doherty. In this deal, for which he produced evaluation slips, he received £35,000 in cash.

He also explained a £25,000 cash payment from Bill Maher of Maher Meat packers in England as payment for consultancy work. He knew Mr. Maher, as he was originally from a neighbouring parish in Tipperary. On his house at Carysfort Avenue in Dublin, Mr. Lowry said that it was bought from a company run by his friend, the late Michael Holly and he got a full mortgage for it. A few months later in January 1997, when he became embroiled in controversy, he decided to sell the house back to Mr. Holly's company Cedar Buildings, for £223,000.

Michael Lowry made a point of saying that his troubles were personal and commercial, he said that at no time was there any question of political impropriety on his part. Earlier the Tribunal said that it would examine personnel from AIB Bank as to how Mr. Lowry was apparently able to open an offshore bank account in the Channel Islands through their branch in Dublin's O'Connell Street.