Moriarty tribunal bill to jump 24%

Tribunals: The bill for the Moriarty tribunal is set to jump 24 per cent next year, even though the long-running investigation into payments of politicians is likely to end shortly.

The increased allocation, from €8 million this year to €10 million in 2007, reflects the increase in costs expected when third-party legal fees become due at the end of the inquiry.

In contrast, the estimate for the planning tribunal remains static for next year, at €16.34 million. This inquiry, which like Moriarty will be 10 years in existence next year, is expected to sit for much of the year. This means that although bills for third-party legal costs will continue to grow, no bills will become payable in 2007.

The Moriarty tribunal, which is investigating the affairs of Charles Haughey and Michael Lowry, was due to complete its work by last summer but the Government granted it a six months' extension, to January 2007.

In 2004, the then Minister for Finance, Charlie McCreevy, announced plans to cut legal fees at the tribunals from €2,500 a day for a senior counsel to €900. However, this has proved impossible to implement for existing inquiries because of opposition from lawyers working on the tribunals.

Meanwhile, the Department of Justice will spend €20.7 million on a variety of commissions and special inquiries in 2007, up 8 per cent on the current year. Another €7 million is being spent on the Human Rights Commission, the Commission for the Victims of the Northern Ireland Conflict, the Independent International Commission and the Independent Monitoring Commission.