Bankrupt property tycoon Derek Quinlan, who still owes Irish taxpayers €403 million through State agency Nama, received a €2.5 million tax rebate from Revenue that he immediately transferred to his wife and hid from his insolvency administrators in the UK.
The money was used to fund their “living expenses”, which included €1,200 (£1,000 stg) per month spent on alcohol and close to £100,000 (€118,000) a year in rent on a six-bedroom London house, newly obtained UK court records show.
Mr Quinlan – one of the most prolific Irish property investors of the Celtic Tiger period, who lost his fortune in the 2008-09 crash – failed to disclose the tax rebate in 2018 to his UK insolvency administrators, who cited it among seven reasons last November why they blocked Mr Quinlan’s exit from bankruptcy.
READ MORE
Finn McRedmond: Restoration of Notre Dame shows hard things can be achieved if we’re not afraid to be ambitious
‘I personally only come here for the ladies’: Fog hits racing but not youthful glamour at Leopardstown
Megan Nolan: A conversation with a man in his late 30s made clear the realities of this new era in my dating life
The remains of the day: give your Christmas leftovers a lift
News in Ireland
- Food industry tried to push Government to oppose EU ban on smoky flavourings: The food industry tried to get the Government to push back against an EU proposal to phase out flavourings that add a smoky taste to meats, fish and crisps, documents show.
- Snapshot poll: Budget aftermath and Government spending draw most voter attention: With potentially less than a fortnight until a general election is called, the aftermath of Budget 2025 and Government spending are the main topics to capture voters’ attention in the last month, according to the latest Irish Times/Ipsos Snapshot poll.
- Dartmouth Square residents criticise ‘wholly inadequate’ MetroLink compensation payments: The maximum payouts for damage to homes caused by MetroLink construction would be “wholly inadequate” to fix defects to protected structures on Dartmouth Square in Ranelagh, Dublin 6, residents have told An Bord Pleanála.
- Kyran Durnin case: Fresh searches expected after no trace of boy found in Dundalk property: One month since gardaí began investigating the disappearance of Co Louth boy Kyran Durnin the investigation team has been unable to determine where or how he died.
- Weather forecast: A dry day for many with limited bright spells and the odd spot of light rain or drizzle. Highest temperatures of 13 to 15 degrees.
- Check out today’s Most Read stories
- Join The Irish Times WhatsApp channel for breaking news straight to your phone.
The Big Read
- ‘Early mornings worked best. I was at my desk at 4.30am’: How I got 9H1s in the Leaving Cert: Robin Caren, who secured top grades in all nine of her end-of-school exams, shares the secrets of her success
Opinion
- David McRedmond: Dublin is a beautiful city held back by naysayers. That needn’t be the case
- The debate: Should the passenger cap out of Dublin Airport be lifted?
Business
- My remuneration ‘was substantial’: The interview transcript Derek Quinlan didn’t want made public: It’s just after lunch on October 2nd, 2023, at the offices of Begbies Traynor accountants, Canary Wharf, London. Bust Irish property tycoon Derek Quinlan (DQ) attends one of the most important meetings of his life.
Sports
- Gerry Thornley’s early season URC review: Leinster pleased, Munster with work to do: Blink and you missed it. With rapid-fire speed, the first tranche of six matches have been and gone. And so, by the end of October, such is the lopsided nature of the rugby season that with nine-plus months until the Lions wrap up business in Australia, already one-third of the BKT URC season has been completed. her
World
- Abandoned in Lebanon: How Ireland offered Syrian refugees a route to safety, then left them in a war zone: Sleeping on the streets after fleeing bombs; children out of school for years; medical treatment attempted at home due to fear of deportation – these are some of the horrors faced by Syrian families who were approved for resettlement to Ireland two years ago but have since been abandoned in a war zone.
- US election: How bad do you want it, ladies? It is the ultimate battle of the sexes in the most visceral of elections, writes Maureen Dowd
- ‘There are times I regret having kids. They’re adults, and it’s now that I’m regretting it, which seems strangee’: Unconditional love and believing their children to be the best thing that has ever happened to them: that’s how parents should feel and think about their children, we’re led to believe. And, typically, many parents do, even if there are times the children drive them to distraction. But these are easy things to say. This is the socially acceptable position to take about parenthood, in all its chaotic splendour.
Podcast Highlights
How can a child disappear in Ireland without the alarm being raised?
Listen | 23:37
Why not try one of our Crosswords & Puzzles?
Like this?
Get the best content direct to your inbox by signing up to one of our newsletters