Ahern says payment allegations 'utterly false'
Wednesday, 30 November 2005 20:07
The Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, has described allegations that he received £80,000 in bribes from businessman Owen O'Callaghan as 'utterly false'.
At the Mahon Tribunal, Tom Gilmartin had claimed that Mr O'Callaghan told him he paid the money to Mr Ahern to block a rival developer getting a tax break.
Tom Gilmartin had been planning a development on the Quarryvale site in west Dublin in partnership with Owen O'Callaghan.
At the same time John Corcoran of Green Property was developing the Blanchardstown Centre in north Dublin and trying to get the site designated under the Urban Renewal Scheme.
Former Environment Minister Pádraig Flynn is to be questioned by the tribunal about whether he met with Mr Corcoran about this in November 1988.
The Department later changed its stated position and for a time recommended the designation. Subsequently Green Property made a £25,000 donation to Fianna Fáil.
In the event Blanchardstown did not get the tax break despite lobbying by local politicians. The Department of Finance decided the concession given to the Tallaght centre should be a once-off.
Mr Gilmartin said Owen O'Callaghan had previously said that he had it 'from the horse's mouth' that Blanchardstown would not get the tax break.
He claimed Mr O'Callaghan had given then Minister for Finance Bertie Ahern payments of £50,000 and £30,000 to ensure this.
But the tribunal heard that Mr Ahern denied ever receiving such a payment and had successfully sued when a similar claim was made by Cork businessman Denis 'Starry' O'Brien.
In his statement to the inquiry Mr Ahern said he did meet with the developer of the Blancardstown centre, John Corcoran, but does not remember discussing tax designation with either him or Mr O'Callaghan, who was developing Quarryvale.
