‘Lawlor received proceeds despite lack of input’

FORMER TD Liam Lawlor received £335,000 from the proceeds of the sale of land at Baldoyle, Co Dublin, in 1998, even though he put up no finance for the property at any stage, the Planning Tribunal heard yesterday.

Under repeated questioning, Mr Lawlor also finally accepted he was the holder of a Liechtenstein bank account into which the Baldoyle money was paid. The Planning Tribunal is expected to decide shortly if it will refer the disgraced former TD to the High Court to adjudicate on whether he has co-operated with the latest stage of its four-year investigation into his financial affairs.

Any decision by the tribunal to refer the matter to the High Court would increase the prospect of Mr Lawlor being sent back to jail for an unprecedented fourth term.