The words of the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, in Cobh, Co Cork, yesterday morning made it clear how much trouble the Taoiseach's special adviser, Mr Paddy Duffy, was in. She told a press conference it was "totally unacceptable" that he was a director of a public affairs company, Dillon Consultants, which advised NTL on its successful bid to buy Cablelink.
Canvassing for party local election candidates in Cobh, she described Mr Duffy's directorship as "a dangerous conflict of interest". She had already asked for detailed statements from the Minister for Public Enterprise, Ms O'Rourke, and the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, on the revelation. In her office in Dublin, Ms O'Rourke was seeking explanations as well. On April 29th she had told the former Fine Gael leader, Mr Alan Dukes, that she had been assured by the Taoiseach "that Mr Duffy had no connection whatsoever with Dillon Consultants". Now she had read in The Irish Times that he had been a director of the company since last December, and had attended a meeting between Dillon Consultants and an international firm with which Dillon ultimately formed a strategic alliance.
Ms O'Rourke ordered officials to check with her own Department, with consultants Rothschild, which had been retained by the Government to conduct the sale of Cablelink, and with the steering committee which oversaw the sale, whether Mr Duffy had ever made representations in relation to the sale to NTL. The officials came back to say there was no evidence of any such representations.
However, the political pressure was building, with Fine Gael and Labour demanding explanations. In Cologne, where he had been attending the EU summit, the Taoiseach was faced with damaging revelations about the man who had been one of his closest political associates throughout his career.
Mr Duffy first started working with Mr Ahern when he was minister for finance. When in opposition from 1994 to 1997, Mr Duffy held the new post of chef de cabinet to Mr Ahern. When Mr Ahern became Taoiseach in 1997, Mr Duffy became his special adviser, one of the two key political positions in the Taoiseach's office, the other being that of programme manager. Last November Mr Duffy told Mr Ahern he would finish working for him at the end of 1999 and pursue a career in the private sector.
Asked about the revelation that the following month, December 1998, Mr Duffy had joined the board of Duffy Consultants, Mr Ahern "kicked for touch". He told reporters he had not had a chance to check the facts of the matter. He said he had known that Mr Duffy was acquainted with Mr Paul Dillon, the managing director of Dillon Consultants. However, he had not known he was a director of the company.
"I did know, from the time that it was raised some weeks ago when we checked, that he did know Mr Dillon and had had some discussions with him about perhaps doing business with him as he looked at his options for later on at the end of the year. I did know that."
Responding to a question about whether he would be demanding Mr Duffy's resignation, Mr Ahern said that he had not yet had a chance to speak to Mr Duffy or check out the details of the Irish Times article which he had seen. "I have no other knowledge. I don't know if he disputes these facts, but I certainly will check."
By the afternoon the Opposition was in full flight. Labour's spokesman on enterprise and employment, Mr Pat Rabbitte, said Mr Duffy "should resign or be fired by the Taoiseach".
Dillon Consultants later cleared up one point: Mr Duffy had indeed signed a form consenting to become a director of Dillon Consultants late last year. Mr Duffy told The Irish Times last Wednesday that he had been put on the board without his knowledge.
The Taoiseach has not yet laid before the Oireachtas the annual statement under the Ethics in Public Office Act that he was required to produce by March 2nd last. Under the Act this statement is to contain individual statements from each special adviser in his department of the interests, if any, they hold that could influence them materially in the performance of their jobs. The Act also requires special advisers in each department to give a statement of interests to their minister each year.
They must also furnish copies of these statements to the Public Offices Commission. It is understood that the practice in the Taoiseach's office is for advisers to fill in these declarations each year, even if there is no change from the previous year's statement. However, no such statements have been placed in the Dail library by the Taoiseach. A spokesman for the Public Offices Commission says that it is not allowed to reveal whether or not it has received such statements from special advisers.