Inquiry into Haughey cash may be nearing end

With his lifestyle, Mr Charles Haughey lived far beyond his means for decades, and it is hard to believe his Revenue settlements cover all tax unpaid on his secret income, writes Colm Keena

The McCracken (Dunnes Payments) Tribunal disclosed aspects of the level of expenditure of Mr Charles Haughey in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

In 1989 Mr Haughey, by way of the bill-paying service operated for him by the Haughey Boland accountancy firm, spent €412,750. In 1990 he spent €335,280 by way of the same service.

Bills from his Abbeville estate were sent by his secretary to the accountancy firm and settled with money sourced, via the late Mr Des Traynor, from the Ansbacher deposits. Records of the bills paid were kept by the accountancy firm.

In fact, however, Mr Haughey was spending money at an even greater rate than these figures indicate. On occasion he would get large amounts of cash from Mr Traynor. On December 22nd, 1987, €75,000 was collected from Guinness & Mahon bank in cash for Mr Haughey. It is thought the money was for spending over Christmas, and in particular at the races. One source says large cash withdrawals at the time of race meetings was a feature of his bank accounts.

Even going on the bill-paying service rate of expenditure, Mr Haughey was spending at least €1 million every two and a half to three years and probably more than that. He bought his Abbeville estate and mansion in 1969; bought an island off Co Kerry in the late 1970s, and built a house on it at considerable cost; and he bought and ran a yacht.

Until 1997, when the truth about his finances was disclosed, he was making tax returns to the Revenue in which he only disclared his income from politics.

There had been concerns about Mr Haughey and his unexplained wealth since the 1960s, when he moved into a large house in Grangemore, Raheny, Dublin, and began to own race horses and drive expensive cars.

Some senior figures in Fianna Fáil believe he made a lot of money in the 1960s, although the details have never been shown or disclosed. Most of the allegations concern links with property developers. Mr Patrick Gallagher, in a newspaper interview some years ago, said his father, the late Mr Matt Gallagher, and other property developers agreed in the 1960s to fund Mr Haughey as he made his career in politics. The funding was to be arranged through Mr Traynor.

Mr Haughey hit (relatively) hard times in the 1970s, when his political career took a knock after the Arms Crisis. The money seemed to dry up, and his debts to AIB grew and grew. Once back in office, however, the money started to flow again.

It is hard to believe that the two settlements made to date, totalling €6,281,718, cover all the tax unpaid on undeclared money received by Mr Haughey during the course of his political career.

What we do know about his finances stems from the Moriarty and McCracken tribunals. The latter examined payments from Dunnes Stores. The former is looking at payments to Mr Haughey since 1979, the year he became Taoiseach. The truth about his finances before 1979 will most likely never be known.

Because he bought land in Dublin, and because of the boom in land prices in recent years, Mr Haughey and his family, despite his profligate expenditure, remain asset-rich. Rezoning the land for development while it is still owned by him is unlikely for political reasons, but its value of remains high because of its location. It is expected that the sale of some or all of the land will provide the money for the tax settlement.

Mr Haughey is 77, suffers from prostate cancer and almost died from a heart seizure two years ago, on St Patrick's Day. Friends say he has weakened considerably in recent months. Unless the Moriarty tribunal comes up with fresh facts concerning his finances, this whole episode involving delving into his finances looks as if it is coming to an end.

The tribunal may yet look at "acts or decisions" made by Mr Haughey when he was in office, although comments by Mr Justice Moriarty in relation to when he would like to see his tribunal wrapped up, indicate he does not envisage any lengthy public inquiry.

The terms of reference of the tribunal involved inquiring into Mr Haughey's finances up to 1996. How he lives these days is not known.