Dunlop denies asking clients to pay FF bills

The lobbyist Frank Dunlop has denied ever asking a business consortium to meet part of a bill owed by Fianna Fáil to an advertising agency in lieu of his fees.

Giving evidence to the Mahon tribunal yesterday Mr Dunlop said that he could not discount the possibility that he had on occasion asked a client to make a donation to Fianna Fáil. However, he said that he had never asked a client to pay a bill on behalf of Fianna Fail "on the basis of a pick-me-up".

Pick-me-up payments involved donors meeting bills owed by political parties to suppliers rather than making direct contributions.

Businessman John Butler, a member of a consortium which retained Mr Dunlop in 1993 in relation to the rezoning of land at Cloghran near Dublin airport, has told the tribunal that the lobbyist wanted the consortium to pay money owed to him to the advertising agency Saatchi and Saatchi on behalf of Fianna Fáil.

Mr Butler has said that the consortium paid nearly £10,000 to Saatchi and Saatchi on behalf of Fianna Fáil in December 1993.

Mr Dunlop said yesterday he was amazed at Mr Butler's statement about the payments to Saatchi and Saatchi. He said that at the time pick-me-ups were a legitimate form of fundraising for political parties.

He said he was curious as to why Mr Butler, a man he suspected of being a strong Fianna Fáil supporter, would try to transfer responsibility for the pick-me-up payment to him.

"I was never asked by John Butler and I never suggested to John Butler that money owed to me should be used to defray the bill for Fianna Fáil to Saatchi and Saatchi," he said.

Mr Dunlop said the fact that he had been introduced to Mr Butler by the land agent Tim Collins suggested to him that the businessman had Fianna Fáil connections. He said that Mr Collins was a supporter of Fianna Fáil and that he and the party's fundraiser, Des Richardson, were "part of the same team".

Mr Dunlop said Mr Collins and Mr Richardson were part of a fundraising group which in the first instance had raised funds for a particular constituency which was represented by the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern.

Mr Dunlop said that when Mr Ahern had been made minister for finance in the early 1990s he had appointed Mr Richardson to raise funds for Fianna Fáil. He said that Mr Collins was well known as a supporter of a particular politician in a particular constituency.

Mr Dunlop said he met Mr Collins at a function held each year on behalf of a particular constituency. He said that the function used to take place at the Royal Hospital in Kilmainham and was run by Joe Burke on behalf of the O'Donovan Rossa Cumann of Fianna Fáil. He said that Mr Ahern was always the guest of honour.

Mr Dunlop said yesterday that he had last heard from Mr Butler in March 2001, when he received a phone call while on holiday in Gran Canaria. He said Mr Butler informed him that he had been contacted by the tribunal and had asked what he should say. Mr Dunlop said he had told Mr Butler that he should answer any questions he was asked.

Meanwhile, the tribunal chairman, Judge Alan Mahon, has advised that Mr Butler should return to Ireland to give evidence. A solicitor for Mr Butler yesterday told the tribunal that his client was currently travelling in South America and was incommunicado. He expected that Mr Butler would return in mid-November. The tribunal had hoped to call Mr Butler as a witness next week.