Individuals who failed to co-operate fully with the new political payments tribunal could be held liable for some of its costs, the Dail agreed yesterday. A proposal to that effect by the Labour leader, Mr Dick Spring, was accepted by the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, on behalf of the Government.

Mr Spring proposed an amendment to the tribunal's terms of reference requiring that:

"(a) the inquiry be completed in as economical a manner as possible and at the earliest date consistent with a fair examination of the matters referred to it; and

"(b) all costs incurred by reason of the failure of individuals to co-operate fully and expeditiously with the inquiry should, so far as is consistent with the interests of justice, be borne by those individuals."

Mr McCreevy said he did not feel it was necessary to state in the terms of reference that if a person did not co-operate fully costs could be found against them in that regard, but he thought it might be "just as well" to put it in to emphasise the point.