McDonald: People have had enough of 'brown envelope' culture

Sinn Féin Deputy Leader Mary Lou McDonald has said that "no amount of bluster" by Seán Gallagher will hide the reality that he received a cheque for €5,000 in connection with a Fianna Fáil fundraiser.

Ms McDonald said that, despite previous statements to the contrary, Mr Gallagher "organized a secret Fianna Fáil fundraiser" in Dundalk in 2008 and "received a cheque for €5,000" from at least one individual who attended.

Mary Lou McDonald said: "Last week Seán Gallagher denied that he had received money in connection with a Fianna Fáil fundraiser at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Dundalk in 2008. Last night on live television under pressure from Martin McGuinness he was forced to change his story.

"It has been confirmed today by a number of sources that the cheque was collected and passed on to Fianna Fáil in advance of the event.

"The sequence of events in this story is that this man gave a cheque to Seán Gallagher in advance of a Fianna Fáil fundraiser at the Crowne Plaza. He attended the secret fundraiser at Seán Gallagher’s request where there were present between 30 and 35 big business people and property developers.

According to a statement released by Fianna Fáil today, the cheque was dated June 26, 2008.

Fianna Fáil said: "The cheque was lodged to the Fianna Fáil account on June 30, 2008, before the fundraising dinner which was held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Dundalk on July 1, 2008.

"Mr Morgan attended that fundraiser."

The businessman is believed to be Hugh Morgan, who received a suspended sentence in a Belfast court in the late 1990s for fuel smuggling and tax evasion. He now runs a company called Morgan Fuels Ireland Limited.

Ms McDonald said: "No amount of bluster by Seán Gallagher will obscure these facts. The Irish people have had enough of cronyism, golden circles and the ‘brown envelope’ culture.

"Sean Gallagher is cut from the same cloth as a Fianna Fáil leadership mired in that culture. More than ever it is very clear that the choice in this election is between those representing the failed politics of the establishment and Martin McGuinness who represents a break with the politics of the past and a new beginning for Ireland."