The following is a summary of the Fine Gael Committee's findings on each public representative in Dublin City or County who is or has been a member of the party at any time from June 1985 to date and who received donations of more than £500 from a building developer.
Sean Barrett
He received a cheque for about £600 from Monarch Properties or their agent at the time of the 1991 local elections and gave it to the local constituency organisation.
Mr Barrett also received "an unsolicited cheque for between £500 and £1,000 from Frank Dunlop at the time of the General Election in 1992".
The committee was satisfied neither payment influenced his voting intentions.
Cathal Boland
The committee said its interview with Mr Boland "was not productive".
"On being questioned about one named possible donor, he indicated that he had received one large contribution on one occasion . . . He has since become concerned about it and has brought it to the attention of the Flood Tribunal.
"Mr Boland declined to give any details of this matter to the committee as he said that Justice Flood had injuncted him from discussing this matter outside the tribunal.
". . . On being questioned in relation to another potential donor he declined to answer on the grounds that Justice Flood had also injuncted him from talking about any matter which might become the subject matter of inquiry by the tribunal. ". . . In view of the unsatisfactory nature of our interview with Mr Boland, the committee is unable to come to any definitive conclusion concerning him.
Liam Cosgrave
". . . He believes that he received £2,000 in cash from Frank Dunlop in 1992/1993, £500£1,000 in 1997 and £500 in 1999.
". . . He also believes that he received £500 or £1,000 in 1997 and £500 in 1999 from Monarch Properties.
". . . He categorically rejects any suggestion that he received any of these sums in exchange for any vote, or that there was any conditions attached to them whatsoever.
". . . In the absence of a detailed account of the circumstances in which these payments were made (particularly the £2,000 paid by Frank Dunlop in cash in 1992/1993), the committee is unable to come to a definitive conclusion in relation to the payments made to him."
Michael Joe Cosgrave
". . . He received £1,000 from Frank Dunlop at the time of the Senate Election in 1993. . . . It was unsolicited.
". . . He also received £500 from Monarch Properties in 1992. He categorically denies having received any other payments from any other builders, developers or their agents.
". . . It may be that he received £500 or £1,000 from Joe Tiernan in 1991. He has no recollection of this. Mr Tiernan believes that he did make such a contribution. Both men are emphatic that such contribution was not a bribe. "Mr Tiernan was a well-known Fine Gael supporter.
". . . Mr Cosgrave is unapologetically in favour of re-zoning.
". . . The committee are satisfied that the two payments (possibly three) mentioned above did not have any influence on his voting intentions."
Anne Devitt
". . . Ms Devitt outspokenly volunteered that when it came to rezoning it was not necessary for anyone to buy her vote.
". . . She stated that in 1991 Frank Dunlop paid for an election leaflet, which had a value of between £200£400. "She denied that she had received any other payment from any builder, developer or their agent. "Both Frank Dunlop and Michael Bailey supported constituency fund-raising events.
". . . Ms Devitt unequivocally committed herself to the following propositions:
- She was never in receipt of any payment from anybody other than genuine political contributions. - All such payments were lodged to the Bank of Ireland, James's Gate to an account entitled the Fine Gael No 2 Account.
". . . The Bank of Ireland account, although entitled Fine Gael No 2 account, was used exclusively for the benefit of Ms Devitt.
". . . She was prepared for the committee to inspect the records of the account provided it did not seek to trace the identity of the persons whose cheques were lodged to it. Ms Devitt wanted "to protect the identity of persons who would then be dragged into this witch-hunt "The committee was of the view that it would not accept any condition placed upon the use of the information given to it. It has not therefore looked at the records of this account. "Ms Devitt indicated that she has refused to allow the Flood Tribunal to inspect her personal accounts.
"In the absence of any powers enabling the committee to compel disclosures of bank accounts, records, etc, it is impossible for the committee to come to a definitive conclusion."
Brian Hayes
". . . In 1999 he received a payment of £1,000 from a firm of builders. This payment was a contribution to the party and was forwarded by him to headquarters.
". . . The committee is satisfied that no payments made to or through him had any effect on his voting intentions."
Larry McMahon
". . . £1,000 [was] paid to him by James Mansfield. Mr Mansfield had an interest in the Clondalkin Paper Mill site. Mr McMahon did not support that development.
"The committee are satisfied that no money he ever received influenced his voting intentions."
Joan Maher
"She received £1,000 from Michael Bailey (Bovale) in 1997. . . . She lodged this and all other payments to a separate account in the Irish Permanent Building Society.
". . . The committee is satisfied that she has not been influenced in any way by the contributions to her election expenses, which she has received."
Olivia Mitchell
". . . In 1992 the total contributions made to her election expenses amounted to £2,150. Of this, £500 in cash was contributed by Mr Frank Dunlop.
". . . In 1997 Ms Mitchell was elected to Dail Eireann. The total contributions made to her election expenses was £6,700.
". . . The only payment from a builder, developer or persons acting on their behalf which exceeded £500 in that year, was £1,000 paid from Dunloe/Ewart." Ms Mitchell also received £250 from Frank Dunlop.
". . . The only occasions upon which her vote coincided with the interests of one of her financial supporters were the Quarryvale rezoning votes.
". . . The committee is totally satisfied that the payment of £500 to her by Mr Frank Dunlop had no bearing whatsoever on Ms Mitchell's vote. Her co-operation with the committee was total. ". . . Her anxiety to assist all inquiries led her on occasions to overstate the amounts she received (e.g., she told the Flood Tribunal inquiry team that the amount paid to her by Frank Dunlop in 1997 was greater than the £250 which she did in fact receive).
"Ms Mitchell is clearly deeply upset by innuendoes or suggestions that she had ever been influenced in her voting by the financial support which she has received.
"The committee is of the opinion that any such innuendoes or suggestions are without merit."
Tom Morrissey
". . . He voted against Quarryvale. In 1996 he received an unsolicited sum of £2,000 cash. He has stated that he told Judge Flood about this sum and wouldn't give the committee any further information relating to it.
"The committee are therefore not in a position to come to a definitive conclusion in relation to this payment.
Nora Owen
". . . She received a sum of £500 or £1,000 from Frank Dunlop in 1992 to help defray her election expenses for the General Election of that year.
". . . In March 1997 she received £1,000 from Monarch Properties.
". . . In 1999 she received £250 from Frank Dunlop."
The committee reported that all three payments were by cheque, were unsolicited and were handed over to the constituency organisation.
". . . The above are the only payments made to her of which she has any memory or record.
". . . The committee is satisfied that any payment made to her had no influence on her voting intentions."
Therese Ridge
"She received an unsolicited donation of £500 in cash from Frank Dunlop at the time of the 1992 General Election. She also received an unsolicited donation of £500 in cash from him at the time of the 1993 Senate Election.
"She received a cheque for £1,000 from Joe Tiernan, of Tiernan Homes Ltd., in 1992. This was unsolicited . . . . She categorically states that there was nothing asked of her in exchange for these donations.
"She voted in favour of the Quarryvale re-zoning motions, the material contraventions motion in respect of lands at Finnstown, Lucan (429/90) (Tiernan Home Builders Ltd.) and the re-zoning of Cherrywood (Monarch Properties).
". . .The committee is satisfied that Ms Ridge did not allow the payments which she received to influence her decision to vote on any of these three motions.
"She received no other payments from any other builder, developer or their agents."
Sheila Terry (formerly Progressive Democrats)
". . . She believes that she may have received financial support from Owen O'Callaghan or Frank Dunlop in 1992. She did not, however, support the Quarryvale re-zoning motion.
"She also received financial support from builders, developers or their agents around the time of the Dublin West Dail by-election in 1996.
"Any payments which were made to her were given to the election account held by the Progressive Democrats party in her constituency. There should therefore be records of all payments made to her with that party.
"The committee is quite satisfied that no payment made to her in any way influenced her voting."
William Dockrell
He received an unsolicited contribution of about £500 from Richard Lynn of Monarch Properties. The committee believed it had "no effect" on his vote.