CJ's `conspicuous effluence' speculation

Linguistic imprecision has been a regular concern for Charles Haughey at this tribunal, and there was another tense moment yesterday when he heard his house on Inishvickillane described as a "bungalow".

In fact, counsel had used the words "bungalow or residence" to describe the building, and there was the hint of a smile in Mr Haughey's eyes as he said he preferred "residence".

But the suggestion that he owned a bungalow was a smear too many on a day when he had already railed against the rumours about the Baskin Cottages sewerage scheme.

Ever since the council ran pipes for the cottages across the Haughey estate, the former taoiseach has been dogged by speculation about the source of his conspicuous effluence. "Pilloried," he said, when all he had done was to donate land for a sewage treatment facility that was of no use to him.

But the pipes, the pipes were calling at the tribunal yesterday, as counsel asked him if he had ever engaged in "a little puffing" to the bank, by suggesting the scheme could be extended for housing on his estate. Mr Haughey demurred. Yes, he may have done some "puffing", but any sewage scheme for Kinsealy would have been a separate one.

After three days of careful preparation, John Coughlan finally came to the point when he queried the apparent lack of management in Mr Haughey's affairs up to 1978, and his financial manager's absence from the many meetings with the AIB.

The witness said it was inevitable that the bank preferred to deal with "the No 1 suspect" directly. Then, just as it was getting interesting, the latest two-hour "tranche" of evidence ran out.

The No 1 suspect will face further questioning today; but after three days reviewing Mr Haughey's drawings, there was general relief when the tribunal moved in the afternoon to Michael Smurfit's paintings.

Dr Smurfit recalled the day when, "on the spur of the moment", he decided to present Mr Haughey with a Jack B. Yeats to mark his presidency of the EU in 1990.

He delivered the gift in person; and no doubt he now wishes he had done the same with the £60,000 donation he intended for Fianna Fail, but paid, at the suggestion of Mr Traynor, into a bank account in London.

Informed by tribunal counsel that Fianna Fail never received the money, Dr Smurfit thought this "very sad". But he was more reticent when asked if he thought the transaction "unusual".

The money had gone into an offshore account, and Fianna Fail didn't have an offshore account. Unusual or what, asked counsel. "What do you think?" replied the witness. "I'm asking you," said counsel. "I think it's terrible," said Dr Smurfit.