Lobbyist Frank Dunlop has told the Mahon tribunal that he paid Fianna Fáil TD GV Wright £1,000 for his support for a land-rezoning proposal in north Dublin in 1993.
The tribunal heard yesterday that Mr Wright has denied receiving any money directly from Mr Dunlop in connection with lands at Cloghran near Dublin airport.
However the Dublin North TD has accepted that he received other political financial support from Mr Dunlop totalling £10,000 in cash.
It also emerged yesterday that the tribunal will hear evidence in the new Cloghran module that the consortium which owned the property paid a £10,000 bill owed by Fianna Fáil to the advertising agency Saatchi and Saatchi in lieu of fees to Mr Dunlop.
In an opening statement counsel for the tribunal, Patricia Dillon SC, said that Mr Dunlop would say that Mr Wright was one of four councillors who between them received £5,000 in relation to the Cloghran lands.
She said it would be alleged that the late Cyril Gallagher received £1,000, Tony Fox received £1,000 and Seán Gilbride received a £2,000 composite payment for his support for a number of rezonings.
She said that before his death Mr Gallagher had denied ever receiving money from Mr Dunlop.
She said that Mr Fox had denied getting any payment for any purpose from the lobbyist while Mr Gilbride had also rejected suggestions that he received any money or benefit in respect of the Cloghran lands.
In 1989, Ms Dillon added, a consortium involving businessmen John Butler, Niall Kenny and Thomas Williams had bought 18 acres of land at Cloghran for £215,000.
The businessmen at the time ran the Courtyard restaurant in Donnybrook.
She said that from the outset it appeared that the consortium was anxious to avoid being registered as the owners of the land.
In September 1990 the land was registered at the Registry of Deeds as being held by solicitor Gerald Kean in trust.
Ms Dillon said that in 1993 the consortium wanted to have the land rezoned for industry and that it had retained Mr Dunlop to assist it with the project.
Mr Dunlop has told the tribunal that he secured the signatures for the rezoning motion which was signed by councillors Cyril Gallagher, Anne Devitt, MJ Cosgrave, Liam Creaven, Seán Gilbride and GV Wright.
Mr Dunlop has contended that he paid Mr Gallagher and Mr Wright around the time they signed the motion and Mr Fox just before the confirmation hearing for the rezoning.
Mr Wright will say that he was approached by Mr Dunlop after he had already agreed with Mr Butler to support the rezoning.
Mr Gilbride will say that he was asked to sign the motion by one of the consortium members.
Ms Dillon said there was disagreement over how much was paid to Mr Dunlop.
Mr Dunlop said yesterday that it was likely that he received just over £24,000, including VAT. However Ms Dillon said that the total sum could be as high as £68,979.
She said that the consortium members would say that Mr Dunlop was paid, mainly by cheque, after the lands were sold in 1996.
Ms Dillon said that Mr Butler had told the tribunal that the consortium had been asked to make a payment to advertising agency Saatchi and Saatchi on behalf of Fianna Fáil.
"From documents discovered to the tribunal these payments were made in December 1993 and totalled £9,929.
"If Mr Butler is correct, these were in effect indirect payments to Fianna Fáil by Mr Dunlop funded from fees due to him by the Cloghran consortium," she said. Ms Dillon also said that following the rezoning, the Cloghran lands were sold in 1996 for £1.6 million.
