Moriarty Tribunal six years old today

The Moriarty Tribunal, which was established in 1997 to investigate payments made to former Taoiseach Charles Haughey and former Fine Gael Minister Michael Lowry, is six years old today.

The tribunal has cost the taxpayer an estimated €13m since its inception and is expected to continue into the foreseeable future.

It has already heard details of £1.8m that businessman Ben Dunne gave to Mr Haughey over a five-year period.

It has also heard that developer Patrick Gallagher gave the former Fianna Fáil Taoiseach £300,000 for land he never received.

The tribunal is still investigating allegations that Mr Lowry may have interfered in the granting of Ireland’s second mobile phone licence to Denis O’Brien’s ESAT when he was Communications Minister in 1995.

Nobody has been prosecuted so far in connection with its investigations.