COMMUNICATIONS CONSULTANT Monica Leech has claimed in the High Court she was defamed by the Evening Heraldduring its 2004 coverage of her work as special adviser to then minister for the environment Martin Cullen. She claims the Heraldpublished articles in November and December 2004 in which it falsely claimed she got government public relations contracts because she was having an affair with the minister.
Ms Leech (49), South Parade, Waterford, has brought libel proceedings against Independent Newspapers (Irl) Ltd, which denies the claims.
The case opened yesterday before Mr Justice Éamon de Valera and a jury of five men and seven women. It is expected to last three weeks.
Ms Leech says in her statement that she was employed to act as a consultant to the Department of Environment and Local Government initially in 2002, on a €650 a day contract and in 2003 at €800 a day. Her work involved promoting various projects for which Mr Cullen’s department was responsible.
She claims the Heraldlibelled her by claiming she was being paid €1,200 a day which, the paper said, was more than was provided for under the terms of her engagement by the department.
Ms Leech, who is married, also claims that later articles falsely stated she had been engaged by the department because she was having an extramarital affair with Mr Cullen. She also claims that one of the articles claimed she was hiding the truth about having an extramarital affair.
Independent Newspapers says the material published was true in substance and in fact in its natural and ordinary meanings and not those meanings contended by Ms Leech. It claims there were legitimate questions as to whether the process by which her appointment as consultant was made had complied with best standards and whether her work represented value for taxpayers’ money.
There were also legitimate questions as to the necessity and usefulness of the work Ms Leech carried out, the newspaper group says.
Independent Newspapers also says there were legitimate questions as to whether her appointment as adviser in July 2002 was influenced by her connections with Mr Cullen. It says there had been suggestions to the effect that she and Mr Cullen were conducting an affair and that the minister had denied these suggestions.
Opening the case yesterday, Paul O’Higgins SC, for Ms Leech, said Ms Leech had built up her public relations business having worked very successfully in the role of president of the Waterford Chamber of Commerce.
While she had met Mr Cullen in this capacity, she could not have been described as being a Fianna Fáil supporter and could in fact be better described as having had “PD leanings”, Mr O’Higgins said.
When Mr Cullen became the first senior minister to be appointed from the Waterford area in 50 years, she was approached to handle public relations for him in relation to a number of matters. She was given two contracts, one of six months and another of two years.
Mr O’Higgins said the Herald, in its series of articles, began its campaign to “destroy” her reputation initially in a snide nudge-and-wink way before going on to make ultimately unsustainable suggestions that there was something “going on” between her and Mr Cullen.
Mr O’Higgins said the Herald wanted to damage Mr Cullen and if there was collateral damage in which her life was destroyed, this was necessary because it was “paper-selling journalism”, Mr O’Higgins said.
The hearing continues.