SENIOR civil servant Ed O’Callaghan told the Moriarty Tribunal yesterday he was never put under political pressure in his life.

RUMOURS surfaced that financier Dermot Desmond was an Esat Digifone shareholder when the consortium won the competition for the country’s second mobile phone licence, the Moriarty Tribunal was told yesterday.

A PERSON from Denis O’Brien’s phone company was found in an off-limits room used by bidders for the country’s second mobile phone licence, the Moriarty Tribunal was told yesterday.

FINANCIER Dermot Desmond’s backing of Esat Digifone was not known to the civil servant in charge of the evaluation process when the Irish-led consortium won the second mobile phone licence, the Moriarty Tribunal heard yesterday.

KEY consultants who vetted the applicants for the country’s second mobile phone licence say they won’t give evidence before the Moriarty Tribunal, now investigating how the award was made.

THE expert project group that selected Esat Digifone to run the country’s second mobile telephone licence played down the financial status of Denis O’Brien’s Communicorp group, the Moriarty Tribunal heard yesterday.