Donations ‘a necessary evil’ says secretary

GIVING donations to politicians who could benefit the company was “a necessary evil”, former Monarch property company secretary Anne Gosling told the Mahon planning tribunal yesterday.

“I believe that if donations were solicited by politicians, I think Monarch would have regarded such payments as a necessary evil or as something that would have to be done,” she said.

Ms Gosling described herself as “a personal assistant, facilitator and messenger” to Monarch founder Phil Monahan, from 1969. She became company secretary in December 1997. Mr Monahan died in 2002.