Burke and benefactors disagree over £150,000

Major differences in evidence have arisen between Mr Ray Burke and his main benefactors, builders Brennan and McGowan.

Mr Burke is to tell the tribunal he never received the proceeds of fundraising, amounting to £150,000, which Brennan and McGowan say they collected on behalf of the former minister in Britain.

Mr Burke's lawyers told the tribunal yesterday that their client "doesn't know anything" about monies raised for him by Brennan and McGowan and an Englishman, Mr Ernest Ottewell, in Britain. The only payments he received from Brennan and McGowan were three offshore payments for £50,000, £60,000 and £15,000 between 1982 and 1985 and small contributions from the two builders' Irish companies at election-time.

However, from the witness box Mr Joe McGowan said these contributions from his Irish companies "weren't that small".

Mr Aidan Walsh SC, for Mr Burke, said his client had received payments averaging £1,000 to £2,000 from Brennan and McGowan's Irish companies during election campaigns.

"It was more than that," Mr McGowan responded.

The two sides also differed on whether Mr Burke had solicited any of the contributions he received from the builders.

Mr Walsh said Mr Burke had never asked for money. He never asked for any favours and he granted none.

According to the witness, however, Mr Burke did state that he needed money to pay for election expenses, such as canvassers and other election workers. He conceded that Mr Tom Brennan may have volunteered payments, but Mr McGowan said that was a matter for Mr Brennan. "All I know is that the money was going to Ray Burke and Fianna Fβil."

Brennan and McGowan and Mr Burke are also in disagreement over an alleged meeting between Mr Burke and Mr McGowan in 1985 concerning land Brennan and McGowan were selling in Sandyford. Mr McGowan has said he asked the politician to find out if Dublin County Council was "seriously interested" in buying the land.

However, Mr Walsh said his client had no recollection of the meeting.

"Well, I can clearly recall it," Mr McGowan said.

Yesterday was the 300th day of public sittings at the tribunal. Mr McGowan is expected to conclude his evidence today and will be followed in the witness box by the auctioneer Mr John Finnegan.

Earlier, the tribunal was told that Brennan and McGowan kept Mr Finnegan in the dark about a loan application to a bank because they had "earmarked" the money to make a substantial payment to Mr Burke.

Mr Dominick Hussey SC, for Mr Finnegan, said his client was "kept away" from the loan application by Canio Ltd to the Lombard and Ulster Bank. Canio was owned jointly by Brennan and McGowan and Mr Finnegan.

Mr McGowan said this was not the purpose of the loan. It was taken out to repay the cost of buying land in Sandyford.

However, Mr Hussey said another reason Brennan and McGowan did not tell Lombard and Ulster of Mr Finnegan's involvement in Canio was because Mr Finnegan had made it clear that he did not want to become involved in any loan application.

He said the two builders wanted to keep Mr Finnegan's identity away from Lombard and Ulster because the bank would require a guarantee that there were no charges on the Sandyford lands. If Lombard and Ulster knew of Mr Finnegan's involvement, it might have discovered that there was another charge, because a second loan had been taken out using the land as security.

Mr Hussey said his client was aware that a loan was being sought from the bank. What he did not know was that his name was involved.

Mr McGowan said there was no doubts whatsoever that Mr Finnegan did not want his name associated with a loan application.