The Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources spent over €1 million on legal and staff fees on the Moriarty Tribunal, writes Liam Reid.
In accounts presented to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the Department said the money was spent mainly on senior and junior counsel for the days that the Department and staff had to be represented at the tribunal over the issuing of the second mobile telephone licence to Esat Digifone.
Other spending by the Department included €2.5 million on the fit-out and maintenance of a new departmental headquarters, and €10.6 million to An Post for the collection of the television licence fee.
The Department's general secretary, Mr Brendan Tuohy, also said that if Irish fishing vessels were found to have exceeded quota levels, the State faced serious fines from Europe.
He said his Department was in contact with the European Commission yesterday regarding recent allegations of fishing quota fraud in Killybegs, Co Donegal, and the Commission was willing to await the outcome of a Garda investigation.