Judge said to own £1/2m CRH shares

A statement is expected today from the tribunal about a shareholding in Cement Road stone Holdings worth £500,000, reported to…

A statement is expected today from the tribunal about a shareholding in Cement Road stone Holdings worth £500,000, reported to be held by the tribunal chairman, Mr Justice Moriarty.

CRH is the company that bought Glen Ding wood from the State in 1992. The sale has been the subject of inquiries by the Comptroller and Auditor General and a Dail committee, and there have been calls for it to be investigated by the Moriarty tribunal.

The late Mr Des Traynor, who was a close financial adviser to Mr Charles Haughey, was chairman of CRH at the time of the sale. In April, the Dail Committee of Public Accounts refused to accept explanations from former Department of Energy officials as to why the woods were sold privately to CRH rather than by way of public sale.

According to Magill magazine, Mr Justice Moriarty holds 34,500 shares in CRH, worth about £500,000. The ownership of the shares could have implications for any inquiry into the sale of the woods by the tribunal.

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There was no comment from the tribunal last night.

A spokesman for CRH said inquiries that have already taken place into the sale had found no evidence of any wrongdoing by the company.

Colm Keena

Colm Keena

Colm Keena is an Irish Times journalist. He was previously legal-affairs correspondent and public-affairs correspondent