‘Ahern gave Burke £750,000 for resignation’

TAOISEACH Bertie Ahern was behind a £750,000 “golden handshake” to former foreign minister Ray Burke to persuade him to resign from the Cabinet a decade ago, it was claimed yesterday.

Former developer Tom Gilmartin alleged at the Mahon Tribunal that a consortium of developers — led by the JMSE group and including Michael Bailey — funded the payoff deal.

According to the 74-year-old tribunal witness, the purpose behind the proposal was to forestall the setting-up of the planning tribunal. Mr Gilmartin also alleged the money was paid to Mr Burke.

The ex-minister quit office and resigned his Dáil seat in 1997 amid gathering allegations he had received corrupt payments from developers.

He resigned from public office shortly before the inquiry was established.

Later, Mr Burke was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment for tax offences and served his term in Dublin’s Arbour Hill jail.

A meeting took place in solicitor Seamus Maguire’s office in Blanchardstown to set up the deal, Mr Gilmartin claimed. He said Mr Maguire was present as was Tim Collins, whom Mr Gilmartin described as “a colleague or friend of the Taoiseach”.

But Mr Maguire has informed the tribunal he never told Mr Gilmartin about the matter.

Lawyer Paul Sreenan SC, for his rival and former business partner Owen O’Callaghan, questioned Mr Gilmartin on why he had delayed giving this information to the tribunal. Mr Gilmartin said this was incidental gossip and hearsay.

Mr Sreenan accused Mr Gilmartin of embellishing the story as he went along.

Asked to explain why he had told tribunal lawyers about the Blanchardstown meeting only after his 20th telephone conversation with them, Mr Gilmartin said it was all irrelevant to him and Mr Burke could have stood on his head in Blanchardstown as far as he was concerned.

Relating what allegedly happened, Mr Gilmartin said while it was Mr Ahern’s proposal to buy off Mr Burke he did not put the proposal directly to Mr Burke but that it was done through an intermediary — Dermot Ahern (the Minister for Foreign Affairs).

Mr Gilmartin said PD leader Mary Harney knew that Mr Burke had been paid to persuade him to go.

Mr Sreenan said: “What you were doing here is spreading scandal.”

Mr Gilmartin replied: “My story is total scandal.”

He posed the question whether his testimony about Frank Dunlop, the late Liam Lawlor, Ray Burke or planning official George Redmond was all fabrication.

At the time, he had known “absolutely nothing” about JMSE, the Baileys or Burke as he was in England and had no interest in it.

Mr Gilmartin said the very first time he met the tribunal he was not co-operating. Initially, he thought they were a joke; they had been appointed by the Oireachtas to report back to “that shower of gangsters” and he would have nothing to do with them. Now, he felt the tribunal was doing “a genuine job”.