The deputy leader of the Labour Party, Mr Brendan Howlin, has described the comments on tribunals of inquiry by the High Court Taxing Master as "over the top, unacceptable and factually incorrect".
Last Thursday, in a ruling awarding costs to former Taoiseach Mr Charles Haughey and members of his family from a challenge to the Moriarty tribunal, Mr James Flynn said tribunals were "the Frankenstein" of modern Irish society. Such comments only played "into the hands of those who seek to undermine and discredit the work of the various tribunals", Mr Howlin said.
It is up to politicians to defend the work of tribunals. "They had been set up by Acts of the Oireachtas to seek after the truth and inquire into matters that had not been successfully inquired into even by Garda investigations in some cases," he added.
It was very important for all Mr Howlin accepted that there was public concern over the money been earned by some lawyers working on the tribunals. He said Mr Flynn "should pay attention to the exorbitant legal costs which are within his remit".
The comments by Mr Howlin on yesterday's This Week radio programme on RTE followed remarks by Mr Jim Mitchell, chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, who described the high levels of fees paid to tribunal lawyers as a "huge scandal".
A former Chief Justice, Mr Justice Tom O'Higgins, yesterday described Mr Flynn's comments as "hurtful to the chairmen of tribunals". He told the Sunday In- dependent that "these remarks would not be taken seriously by anyone who understands the administration of justice in this country".
There has been a marked reluctance by senior politicians, especially members of the Government, to comment on Mr Flynn's remarks. A Government spokesman would only say that the remarks had been noted.