Colleagues of Perry say ministerial position now becoming precarious

Government colleagues of Minister of State for Small Business John Perry have said privately his ministerial position has become increasingly precarious this week as more details have emerged in relation to his multimillion euro debts.

A number of senior Government figures including Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore publicly backed Mr Perry after he consented to a judgment in the Commercial Court last week to on an unpaid €2.5 million loan.

However, over the course of the weekend several ministerial colleagues have said the situation has got worse for him, especially in light of new disclosures about his business affairs and his level of indebtedness.

The Irish Times disclosed last week that court documents filed by Danske Bank in its legal action to recover debts of €2.47million from Mr Perry stated he had taken out a loan from another bank to meet a tax liability of €125,000 and had referred to Mr Perry saying he knew Bank of Ireland chief executive Richie Boucher personally.

The disclosures raised a possible conflict of interest between Mr Perry’s dealings with senior figures in the banks as a Minister of State and his dealings with them on behalf of his business. He also needs to clarify his tax status, colleagues have said privately.

A Minister, speaking on the basis of anonymity, said every day the situation was getting worse for Mr Perry and was now becoming disruptive. “There is an overlap between his business and his ministry.”