Ex-minister and lobbyist: No close ties between politicians and builders

A former junior finance minister who became a lobbyist for the construction industry months after losing his seat has denied that firms were too close to politicians during the boom.

Tom Parlon, who became director general of the Construction Industry Federation after losing his Dáil seat in 2007, made the claim at the banking inquiry yesterday. He was speaking alongside his predecessor at the CIF, Liam Kelleher.

Mr Parlon, a former Progressive Democrats TD, rejected claims that a cosy relationship between ministers and builders contributed to the crash.