Builders retract evidence to Flood Tribunal

Two businessmen who previously claimed in evidence to the Flood Tribunal that payments totalling £125,000 given to Mr Ray Burke were the proceeds of fundraising efforts retracted their evidence this morning.

Mr Joseph McGowan and Mr Tom Brennan retract evidence to Flood Tribunal

Building contractors Mr Tom Brennan and Mr Joe McGowan admitted in a joint letter from their solicitors evidence they gave in April 2000 had not been "entirely true".

Mr McGowan said he confused a £50,000 payment to Mr Burke, that he said were the proceeds of fundraising for the former Fianna Fáil minister and his party, with a donation of a £60,000 cheque from his company Canio Ltd to Caviar Ltd, a company owned by Mr Burke.

Tribunal lawyers revealed in March that a total of £125,000 paid to Mr Burke was traced to funds from Canio Ltd, registered in the Channel Islands.

It would be impossible for persons who were in control of offshore companies making large lump-sum payments to forget making these payments Mr Pat Hanratty, Counsel for the tribunal

Mr Brennan acknowledged he was aware Mr Burke had received this cheque and a second for £15,000 through Canio Ltd and a second company, Kalabraki Ltd.

Both men accepted these were personal donations and not fundraising proceeds, the tribunal heard today.

In April 2000, Mr McGowan told the tribunal they had been involved in fundraising for Mr Burke throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. These had taken the form of dinners parties and "whip-rounds" at race meetings in Cheltenham and Royal Ascot.

Mr Burke had claimed in evidence he had told the two builders exactly where to lodge the money in his bank account in Jersey.

He specifically stated he never made any personal payments to Mr Burke or Mr George Redmond, as the tribunal lawyers alleged.

Mr Brennan claimed that he did not handle any of this money, but had been involved in election campaigning for Mr Burke during this period.

Mr McGowan claimed the annual target of this fundraising was £10,000, but up to £20,000 had accrued in some years. He said this ceased in 1984, when he had paid Mr Burke £50,000 remaining "in the kitty" in respect of "outstanding contributions".

But in letter dated March 29th, 2001 Mr McGowan said he had confused this final payment with money paid by Canio Ltd to Mr Burke in 1984, which he had neglected to mention in his previous testimony.

Counsel for the tribunal Mr Pat Hanratty said this evidence had left him "scratching his head".

"It would be impossible for persons who were in control of offshore companies making large lump-sum payments to forget making these payments," he said.

Mr Hanratty told the tribunal the new evidence "presented a number of inconsistencies" with that of Mr Burke, especially a payment of £15,000 to Mr Burke in 1985. This "stuck out like a sore thumb," he said.

He added the tribunal would attempt to discover where the payments from Mr McGowan and Mr Brennan to Mr Burke were lodged. He said claims by Mr McGowan that he had no knowledge of offshore accounts in the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man in the name of Mr Burke were directly contradicted by Mr Burke.

Mr Burke had claimed in evidence he had told the two builders exactly where to lodge the money in his bank account in Jersey.

Mr Hanratty also said that their admission that they had paid Mr Burke money through their companies conflicted with his earlier testimony, when he claimed Mr McGowan had told him all donations were the proceeds of fundraising.

He said that the tribunal had identified a number of payments made by companies registered in the names of Mr McGowan and Mr Brennan that required further investigation.

The tribunal resumes this afternoon.