Moriarty engages McDowell

Lawyers for Denis O'Brien and Dermot Desmond are to seek a judicial review of the decision by the Moriarty tribunal to hire former tánaiste and attorney general Michael McDowell.

Mr O'Brien is expected to seek an injunction tomorrow in the High Court to prevent Mr McDowell continuing his examination of Danish consultant Michael Andersen.

Mr McDowell has been hired to question Mr Andersen about the 1995 mobile phone licence competition, which was won by Esat Digifone

At the outset of today's hearing Michael Lowry, the independent deputy for North Tipperary, who is named in the tribunal's terms of reference, said he had to represent himself because he could no longer fund a legal team.

He said he had sought an interim payment for his costs from the tribunal chairman, Mr Justice Michael Moriarty, but Jacqueline O'Brien SC, for the tribunal, said the chairman was constrained by law as to the authorising of payments.

Mr Lowry questioned whether Mr McDowell, former leader of the Progressive Democrats, was conflicted in some way by matters he might have been involved in as a government minister.

Mr Justice Moriarty said it was because of "unwarranted slurs and imputations" on a member of the legal team by an affected party before the tribunal that he had decided to engage Mr McDowell and the move had the support of the entire legal team.

Lawyers for Denis O'Brien, Dermot Desmond, and the Department of Communications said they wanted to make submissions on the matter, but Mr Justice Moriarty said he had learned over the years that valuable time allocated for witnesses was lost with "free rein" being given to submissions and debate.

However Jim O'Callaghan SC, for Mr O'Brien said it was an "alarming and ill advised development". He said Mr McDowell had a whole series of conflicts of interest arising from his involvement in public life. A conflict of interest on the part of Mr McDowell meant the tribunal itself had a conflict.

The chairman said he had received a four page letter from Mr O'Brien last week that he said was largely confined to "abuse, accusations of bias and peremptory demands". He said attempts at intimidation or to stop a final report emerging would not avail.

Mr Andersen was a lead consultant to the 1995 mobile phone licence competition, which was won by Esat Digifone. Mr Lowry was a government minister at the time. Mr O'Brien and Mr Desmond were shareholders.

In his evidence this afternoon Mr Andersen said he had extensive experience of mobile phone licence competitions and that he did not notice anyone seeking to favour Esat. Esat had won the competition because it had submitted the best bid, he said. He also said he formed a view some years ago, due to his private dealings with the tribunal, that some members of its team had a bias against Esat and a preferred view in relation to the outcome of its inquiries into the licence competition.

Mr Andersen will continue his evidence tomorrow.