Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has been told by the Mahon tribunal it is concerned that Manchester businessman Michael Wall may have been acting as his nominee when he bought the house in Drumcondra in March 1995, The Irish Timeshas learned. Colm Keena, Public Affairs Correspondent reports.
Calculations by the tribunal have also established that Mr Wall lost £15,800 on the sale of the house to Mr Ahern when various taxes and costs are taken into account. Mr Wall bought the house for £138,000 and sold it for £180,000. Mr Ahern told the tribunal last month that he believed Mr Wall had received a fair price for the house.
Mr Ahern said it was agreed in late 1994 that Mr Wall would buy a house in Drumcondra, Mr Ahern would rent it, and Mr Wall would stay there when in Dublin.
Mr Ahern told the tribunal that in early December 1994, he felt he was on the cusp of becoming Taoiseach. He had separated from his wife and had yet to arrange permanent new accommodation. He was anxious for political reasons to have an address he could point to if the issue arose in political debate.
Although he would not actually be living in the house in December 1994, Mr Ahern said he was anxious to be able to state that he had a secure agreement that he would be renting a particular property. Mr Ahern was expecting to become Taoiseach on December 6th.
Mr Wall and Mr Ahern have told the tribunal that on December 3rd, 1994, Mr Wall produced £30,000 sterling in cash during a meeting in Mr Ahern's constituency centre, St Luke's. Mr Ahern's then partner, Celia Larkin, was also at the meeting. Mr Ahern put the cash in a safe.
Mr Ahern told the tribunal the money was to be used on structural work on the house that was being purchased by Mr Wall, and that Ms Larkin would oversee this.
The money was deposited by her in a bank account in her name on December 5th. Some of the money was later used to settle a stamp duty bill of approximately £8,400 that arose from the purchase of the house by Mr Wall.
On the same day, Ms Larkin deposited £50,000 belonging to Mr Ahern in another account in her name, again for use on work on the house. However, this money was withdrawn a month later and returned in cash to Mr Ahern, the tribunal has been told.
In 1996, Mr Wall wrote a will dealing solely with the Drumcondra house and leaving it to Mr Ahern in the event of his death.
In the event of Mr Ahern pre-deceasing him, the house was to go to Mr Ahern's children. Mr Ahern said he had no knowledge of this.
Mr Ahern told the tribunal he had decided to buy the house after he became Taoiseach in 1997.
Mr Wall said the net proceeds from the sale were lodged to a savings account in Galway. A month later he withdrew £50,000 in cash. He told the tribunal that he had intended to purchase machinery with the money but did not. He brought the cash back with him to Manchester where he placed it in a safe before spending it on receipted expenditures.
Ms Larkin said last night she had no comment. Mr Wall could not be contacted.
A spokeswoman for Mr Ahern said:
"It is not the intention of the Taoiseach to respond to piecemeal disclosure of information by the media. The full detail of all these matters are set out in the transcripts and documents which have been unlawfully leaked to cause mayhem and confusion in the course of the General Election.
To respond to these selective leaks is merely to contribute to a carefully orchestrated campaign. The Taoiseach's full position is already known to the tribunal and will not be dealt with on a drip-by-drip basis to drip-by-drip disclosures."