Dunlop denies political cover-up over diary

Mahon tribunal:Lobbyist Frank Dunlop has denied he deliberately excluded meetings with senior politicians, including Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, from edited diaries he submitted to the tribunal.

At the Quarryvale II module of the Mahon tribunal at Dublin Castle yesterday, Mr Dunlop said he could not explain why he excluded entries related to Mr Ahern, Padraig Flynn, Albert Reynolds or Liam Aylward from his diaries when he gave them to the tribunal.

The entries were later discovered by the tribunal in the original diaries.

Patricia Dillon SC, counsel for the tribunal, said that in 1999 the tribunal asked Mr Dunlop to provide extracts from his diaries of 1991 to 1993 which were relevant to the Quarryvale development. At the time, Mr Dunlop was employed by developers Owen O'Callaghan and Tom Gilmartin to promote the west Dublin development, which became the Liffey Valley Shopping Centre.

The tribunal requested further edited diaries in 2000 and asked for Mr Dunlop's original diaries in 2001.

Ms Dillon highlighted six separate meetings recorded between April and October 1992, with Mr Reynolds then taoiseach, Mr Ahern then minister for finance, and with Liam Aylward then minister of state for education, all excluded from Mr Dunlop's redacted diaries. Two of the meetings, on September 3rd and 4th, were with Mr Ahern.

"For the avoidance of any doubt, I can tell you I have never in my life spoken to Bertie Ahern . . . in relation to Quarryvale . . . except to get Mr Ahern to perform the official opening of Quarryvale," Mr Dunlop said.

Ms Dillon said it appeared that some entries were covered with post-it notes before being photocopied and provided to the tribunal and other entries were "overwritten" after the edited diaries were supplied and before the originals were given to the tribunal.

She highlighted a diary entry that noted a meeting between Mr O'Callaghan and Mr Flynn, then minister for justice, in October 1992, which was also excluded from the redacted diaries. Mr Dunlop said he did not think it was relevant.

In a terse exchange, Judge Gerald Keys asked Mr Dunlop if he knew what the meeting was about. Mr Dunlop said he did not.

Judge Keys said unless the meeting referred to Quarryvale, it made no sense to include it. He said the questions being asked of Mr Dunlop went to the heart of his credibility.

"I find it extremely difficult to accept a lot of the answers you have given, they just don't make sense," Judge Keys said.

Six references to the "big one" in 1993 were also excluded from the redacted diaries, Ms Dillon noted.

Mr Dunlop said the "big one" referred to a success fee he was to be paid if the cap on the size of the Quarryvale development was successfully lifted.

Ms Dillon asked why he excluded them, since they involved Quarryvale.

"I just cannot give you a cogent explanation as to why I did it, but obviously I did it," Mr Dunlop replied.

Ms Dillon accused Mr Dunlop of talking nonsense. She asked if the "big one" could possibly refer to a deal between architect Ambrose Kelly, Mr O'Callaghan, the late Liam Lawlor and Mr Dunlop to acquire 25 per cent of the shares each in a national stadium at Neilstown then being considered for development.

Mr Dunlop said he was "loath" to agree.

Meanwhile, in a submission to the tribunal, the Dublin Mid-West constituency of the Workers' Party has called on the tribunal to "instruct" South Dublin County Council to set aside an impending decision on accepting the Liffey Valley Shopping Centre as the official town centre for the Lucan/Clondalkin area, until after the publication of the tribunal's final report.