Lawlor had secret stake in land, says Dunlop

Former Fianna Fáil TD Mr Liam Lawlor secretly owned a stake in controversial land at Carrickmines and was centrally involved in attempts to have it rezoned, the lobbyist Mr Frank Dunlop has told the tribunal.

According to Mr Dunlop, it was Mr Lawlor who originally suggested that he (Mr Dunlop) be contacted in connection with efforts to rezone the land. His interest in the company owning the land was registered offshore.

This information emerged during the opening statement delivered yesterday by Mr John Gallagher SC, for the tribunal, in which Mr Dunlop's allegations are outlined. Mr Lawlor has denied he had any involvement or interest in the land or the companies that own it. His only knowledge of their affairs came from reading the newspapers.

Mr Gallagher started his opening statement by recalling Mr Dunlop's previous involvement with the tribunal. Having refused to make a statement, he gave direct evidence in Dublin Castle in April 2000. On that occasion he provided the tribunal with lists of county councillors to whom he made payments. One of the rezoned lands he identified at this time was the Carrickmines property owned by Paisley Park/Jackson Way.

Mr Dunlop said Paisley Park had been dissolved and sold on to Jackson Way after 1993. The businessman, Mr James Kennedy, and the lawyer, Mr John Caldwell, were involved. He said Mr Kennedy gave him £25,000 in cash for disbursement to councillors.

He told tribunal lawyers at the time he had a "deep suspicion" that a third individual was involved, because of the person's widespread knowledge of matters. The individual was identified yesterday as Mr Lawlor.

Mr Dunlop's first contact with Mr Kennedy followed a phone call from the businessman in January 1991. At a meeting in the basement of Mr Kennedy's amusement arcade on Westmoreland Street, Mr Kennedy told him that Mr Caldwell had suggested he contact Mr Dunlop about the rezoning of the Paisley Park lands.

According to Mr Dunlop, Mr Kennedy told him that he was the beneficial owner of Paisley Park, which was registered in the Isle of Man. There would be an attempt to rezone the company's land, and he (Mr Kennedy) was aware this would cost money.

Mr Dunlop thinks he may have sought a fee of £50,000, but a fee of £25,000 in cash was ultimately agreed and paid. The money was paid on the understanding that money would be paid to councillors in order to ensure there would be "sufficient voting power" to get a rezoning. If the land was successfully rezoned, Mr Dunlop would get a "success fee" of £100,000.

Mr Kennedy told him he had been through the process before and already had "an arrangement" with Cllr Tom Hand. Mr Kennedy told him that it was Mr Lawlor who had originally suggested to Mr Caldwell that he (Mr Dunlop) be contacted. Mr Kennedy said Mr Lawlor had been "very helpful and would continue to be helpful in the future". With Mr Lawlor's help, the rezoning would succeed.

Over the following five or six years, Mr Dunlop said he had a number of meetings with Mr Kennedy. At all these meetings, Mr Kennedy spoke of Mr Lawlor and his engagement in the lands.

Mr Kennedy is refusing to appear before the tribunal. In a letter to the tribunal he said he had no beneficial interest in the lands and no dealings with Mr Lawlor or any others involved in the controversy. Mr Kennedy, who lives in Gibraltar, said he had renounced Irish citizenship and cited ill health and a desire for privacy as reasons for not co-operating with the tribunal. His wife Antoinette has also denied any involvement in or knowledge of the matter.