FF rejects Labour magazine funding claim

FIANNA FÁIL yesterday rejected a claim by the Labour Party that it was bypassing strict party funding regulations by securing advertising in the party’s glossy magazine.

The party said the magazine was a private venture by a publishing company and that Fianna Fáil derived no financial benefit from it.

The party demanded that Labour’s spokeswoman on finance, Joan Burton, retract the claims.

The 104-page The Nation contains a total of 30 full-page and half-page advertisements by prominent development companies. They include Bovale Developments, the company owned by Michael and Tom Bailey, both of whom were excoriated by Mr Justice Flood in his report for the Planning Tribunal.

The Nation is published by Correspondent Media Ltd, a company whose directors are Fianna Fáil TD Conor Lenihan and Máirtín Breathnach.

Claims by Ms Burton that Fianna Fáil was using the magazine to secure political funding from builders and developers outside the scope of the legal disclosure rules for political funding were strongly refuted by both the party and the publishers of the magazine.

A statement from FF said Ms Burton had made very serious allegations regarding advertising contained in the Fianna Fáil magazine.

The claims, the statement said, were “completely false, without foundation and Fianna Fáil unequivocally rejected them”.

“The Fianna Fáil Party does not seek advertising, identify where advertising is sought or receive any advertising revenue associated with The Nation magazine,” the party said.

However, the party has total control over the editorial content of the magazine.

In a separate statement, Correspondent Media said its legal advisers were currently examining the statement in relation to some of the allegations made.

Ms Burton last night said that the magazine styled itself as the official publication for Fianna Fáil, that it stated it was published on behalf of Fianna Fáil and that it should have been disclosed clearly that advertising revenue was going to Correspondent Media and not to the party.

“It’s extraordinary the extent to which builders dominate the magazine in terms of advertising,” she said.

“Fianna Fáil has been in power for 18 of the last 20 years. It’s reasonable to ask about the basis on which it is published and financed.”

Politically, she questioned the inclusion of a prominent advertisement by Bovale, which she said was the subject of a “stern report” by the Planning Tribunal.

“I have every reason to feel sympathy for Beverly Flynn. There seems to be one law for her and another law for others,” she said.