Banking inquiry: Rabbitte not to face investigation over accusation

Former Labour leader Pat Rabbitte will not face an investigation into allegations made by a whistleblower at the banking inquiry.

Mr Rabbitte was informed in August he was the subject of a Protected Disclosure made to the committee.

It had been alleged the Labour TD was given an unfair advantage before his appearance at the banking inquiry in July as a result of being given information in advance by his colleague and chairman Ciarán Lynch.

Clerk of the Dáil Peter Finnegan has now informed Mr Rabbitte there will be no inquiry into the claims.

Mr Finnegan said he had given the allegations due consideration and there was no basis to them.

Speaking last night, Mr Rabbitte said he had received confirmation on Tuesday the claims were being dismissed.

Mischievous attempt

He said the protected disclosure had the capacity to slow down the work of the inquiry even further.

The former Labour leader insisted the claims were a mischievous attempt to delay the committee and was relieved it had failed.

Mr Rabbitte said the only information to pass between himself and Mr Lynch was an article in The Irish Times by Miriam Lord that he had left on Mr Lynch’s desk.

It referenced a letter he had published in this newspaper in January 2009 and it discussed whether the Department of Finance came to the late night meeting on September 29th, 2008, with legislation prepared to nationalise Anglo Irish Bank.

The work of the banking inquiry has been delayed until next year after allegations were made about the work of the committee.

Those claims made by a former investigator at the inquiry were found to be of no substance.

The whistleblower had alleged preferential treatment was given to certain witnesses.

However, senior counsel Senan Allen said the allegations was made up of a good deal of suspicion and much less in the way of hard information.