Irish Press chief grilled at agm

At a heated agm yesterday, chairman and managing director of Irish Press plc Dr Eamon de Valera faced a barrage of questions from irate shareholders.

Ordinary shareholder John Power enquired as to whether the company had any intention of relaunching its newspaper titles.

Dr de Valera said that the Irish Press did not have the resources to proceed with the publication of any of its titles at this time; otherwise he would "certainly not dismiss it".

Another shareholder declared that the "real truth" was that the company has "no intention of relaunching".

Mr Power also enquired as to why the board of directors decided not to participate in the RTÉ documentary A Family Fortune: de Valera's Irish Press, which he said had painted the company's founder, Eamon de Valera (grandfather of the current chairman) in a very poor light.

"Personally speaking, I found that documentary a disgrace," Dr de Valera replied. He was invited by RTÉ to appear on the documentary, but none of the major issues covered in the programme were mentioned to him at that time, he said, and he declined the offer.

He said that he "objected strenuously" after the programme was broadcast and lodged a complaint with the Broadcasting Complaints Commission, but he was informed by Mr O'Connor that he had allowed "a smear to be spread from Mallon Head to Mizen Head" on his grandfather's name.

Dr de Valera was repeatedly questioned as to why the company has not yet repaid a loan of €2 million owed to Independent News & Media (IN&M).

He said that the board would only consider repaying it if there was a real prospect of relaunching their titles.

One shareholder told Dr de Valera that the only hope for the company lay in repaying this loan to IN&M.

"Summon your courage, do the manly thing, pay O'Reilly the money and get him off our backs," he urged the chairman, adding that it was "morally imperative" that the company did not have the shame of "a knight of the realm . . . holding our titles hostage."

Another aggrieved shareholder, Neal Duggan, requested an estimate of the cost of the legal action that the company has taken against former minister Richard Bruton, and which has been ongoing for a decade.

Dr de Valera said that he did not know the cost and in any case did not consider it appropriate to disclose such information to shareholders.