The Minister for Health, Mr Micheal Martin, told the High Court today the 2002 general election was the first election to be governed by new legislation setting spending limits for candidates and he was very anxious to be in full compliance with that legislation.
He denied a suggestion by Mr Shane Murphy SC, for disability campaigner Ms Kathy Sinnott, that it was "wholly implausible" that Mr Martin had, prior to the general election, a "secret arrangement" which was not recorded in written form whereby he could reduce a 50 per cent assignment of his spending limit to Fianna Fáil in order to keep him within the election spending limits.
"I don't regard it as implausible," Mr Martin said. He said he didn't see a need for having a written record of a verbal arrangement with the party whereby he could reduce the assigned figure if required.
He agreed the Fianna Fáil national executive had passed a rule in 2001 stating that each candidate was required to assign 50 per cent of their spending limit to the FF national campaign and that candidates were required to sign written undertakings to that effect which latter would be held in FF headquarters and could also be viewed by the Public Offices Commission.
He also agreed he had never written to FF asking to reduce his assignment to the party.
During all this time, he was taking advice from his agent in relation to the requirements of complying with the 1997 Electoral Act in relation to spending limits for candidates, he said.
Mr Martin was opposing a petition, brought by Ms Sinnott and Mr Mark Menihane, an elector in Cork South Central, aimed at overturning the result of the general election in the five-seater constituency in May 2002 where Mr Martin topped the poll and Ms Sinnott was narrowly defeated for the last seat.
Mr Martin topped the poll with a surplus of 5,500 votes. Also elected were Fianna Fáil's Mr Batt O'Keeffe and Mr John Dennehy, Mr Simon Coveney of Fine Gael and Mr Dan Boyle of the Green Party. After a marathon count and recount, Ms Sinnott lost the last seat to Mr Dennehy by a margin of six votes.
