The Wicklow county manager, Mr Blaise Treacy, has insisted that "there was no favour asked and no favour given" between him and a property development company which built his home in Bray.
Ballymore Homes, which is located on the borders of Wicklow and Kildare, built Mr Treacy's home seven years ago. Over the past decade the company has also built a number of housing developments in Co Wicklow.
This week Mr Treacy said that since the house was built "conspiracy theorists" had been conducting a whispering campaign alleging that the house had been a gift. Mr Treacy also claimed rumours were circulating that members of his family had close ties with the building firm. Mr Treacy said the campaign against him was an attempt to undermine him as county manager, a position he has held for the past 12 years. As county manager he is the head of the county's planning authority.
A front-page report in the Bray and Wicklow People newspapers last Thursday quoted Mr Treacy as saying there was "no truth whatsoever" in the rumours.
However, when contacted on Thursday night Mr Treacy said he took exception to Irish Times coverage of recent controversial planning issues in Wicklow and declined to comment further. Despite a number of calls over two days, The Irish Times was unable to get a comment from a Ballymore Homes spokesman.
In the People newspapers' report Mr Treacy indicated that he has "been aware on and off over the past six or seven years of the stories that have been circulating". With reference to his choice of builder, the report quotes Mr Treacy as saying: "Based on the advice I was given they were the best firm for the task, and we went with them. There was no favour asked and no favour given and every penny was paid."
Mr Treacy also rejected suggestions that his family was involved with the building firm: "Within no time I was hearing that I had a house built for me, then it was a story that I had a holiday home given to me and finally it was that my brother-in-law, who is actually a priest in Canada, and even my wife, were directors of the company in question."