Evidence continues at planning tribunal

A former executive with the British company behind Tom Gilmartin’s planned Bachelor’s Walk development in Dublin has continued giving evidence to the Mahon Tribunal.

Ted Dadley told the tribunal today how former Fianna Fáil TD Liam Lawlor turned up uninvited at a meeting of the Arlington Properties directors in London in May 1988.

He said the directors did not want to invite Mr Lawlor in, but did so out of courtesy because he said he was representing the Government.

Mr Dadley said Mr Lawlor told those attending the meeting that he could help them navigate the corridors of power in Ireland.

The directors subsequently decided to hire him as a consultant and paid him fees through Mr Gilmartin for a period of 10 months.

Mr Dadley said he did not know what services, if any, Mr Lawlor provided in return for the money, which was not a political donation.

He said Mr Gilmartin was upset about Mr Lawlor’s involvement and added that, although his memory of the time was patchy, it was quite likely that Mr Gilmartin’s version of events was true.

Mr Dadley told the tribunal that he was astounded when former government minister Padraig Flynn asked him to make a donation to Fianna Fáil during a fundraiser in London in 1989.

Mr Flynn’s barrister put it to the witness that he knew the event was a fundraiser and could have expected to be asked for a donation.

However, Mr Dadley said that, on the contrary, he was astounded because he had never been asked before to donate money to any political party.

Under questioning from the Taoiseach’s lawyer, Mr Dadley also admitted that a section of his written statement to the tribunal was inaccurate.

In the statement, the British businessman said an article jeopardising the Bachelor’s Walk scheme appeared in the Irish Times two days after he refused Mr Flynn’s request for a donation.

He said the article, which revealed that Arlington was behind the purchase of land at Bachelor’s Walk, pushed up the price of the remaining land in the area and was one of the reasons why the project never got off the ground.

However, in evidence today, he agreed with Bertie Ahern’s lawyer that the article had actually appeared 18 months after Mr Flynn asked for the donation.