Opposing land move unrelated to Haughey: Owen

FORMER Justice Minister Nora Owen yesterday denied she had opposed a land development because she feared it would benefit the interests of former Taoiseach Charles Haughey.

Giving evidence to the Mahon Tribunal, Ms Owen insisted that she had no recollection of meeting developer Paul Walls in the early 1990s to discuss the possible rezoning of land in Kinsealy, north Co Dublin.

In earlier private evidence to the tribunal from Mr Walls, it had been suggested that Ms Owen was against developing the 54-acre site in 1993 as such a move could have had knock-on effects which would have suited Mr Haughey.

Ms Owen insisted that she was against rezoning the site because it was away from other low intensity development areas, not because of any antipathy to Mr Haughey.

Under questioning from Henry Murphy SC, acting for the tribunal, Ms Owen also stated that she could not recollect meeting Mr Walls when the rezoning issue was under discussion in north Co Dublin in 1993.

She accepted she had met Mr Walls as he had sent her a letter regarding their discussions afterwards.

“It is clear I discussed this proposal with Mr Walls although I have no recollection of such a discussion,” she said. Ms Owen stated she probably saw Mr Walls at one of her Saturday clinics in Swords while she was a councillor.

The rezoning of the land in Kinsealy was never approved.

Judge Alan Mahon said that he wanted to challenge a perception among some of the public that just because people have been called to give evidence to the tribunal it did not necessarily mean they were under suspicion of any wrong-doing.

The current module of the tribunal is dealing with the rezoning of land owned by Mr Walls.