In a statement issued last night, the leader of the Labour Party, Mr Ruairi Quinn, said:
"During the course [of the] Labour Party leadership election, I had a conversation, initiated by me, with John Meagher, deputy chairman of the Independent Newspaper Group about that election. During the course of that conversation, I enquired if an opinion poll on the party's leadership election was being conducted by Independent Newspapers. I indicated my belief that such a poll would probably show that I enjoyed more popular support than Brendan Howlin, my opponent in that contest.
"A poll was conducted. In the interim I had no contact whatsoever with Independent Group Newspapers. Neither do I have any knowledge of what took place within Independent Group Newspapers in relation to the poll.
"I reject absolutely the assertion by Mr Vincent Browne that either I or my party are in anyway beholden to Independent Group Newspapers. One issue raised by Mr Browne is that my predecessor as Labour Party leader, Dick Spring, indicated to the Dail last year that in the recent past he had blocked an attempt by Mr Tony O'Reilly to place a cap on capital acquisitions tax. I would point out that, during my three years as Finance Minister, no changes of that kind were made by me. This week my party tabled a Bill before the Dail in relation to diversity of media ownership. This is hardly the actions of a party beholden to Independent Newspapers.
"During the course of the 1990 presidential election campaign, donations were received from companies, of which Fitzwilton was one. A cheque was made out by Fitzwilton directly to QMP as part payment for work done by them for the Robinson campaign.
"The suggestion made by Mr Browne that bogus invoices were sent on foot of expenses which were not actually incurred by the 1990 presidential campaign is false. Every bill paid by or on behalf of the Robinson campaign was for bona fide work commissioned on its behalf."