No comment on Esat from rainbow leaders

RAINBOW RESPONSE:THE LEADERS of the rainbow coalition parties have declined to comment further on their de facto approval of the granting of the 1995 mobile phone licence competition to Denis O'Brien's Esat Digifone.

Then taoiseach John Bruton of Fine Gael, then tánaiste Dick Spring of Labour and then minister for social welfare Proinsias De Rossa of Democratic Left were members of a cabinet subcommittee on telecommunications, along with then minister for finance Ruairí Quinn.

The then minister for communications Michael Lowry sought a meeting with them on October 25th, 1995, to seek the leaders’ support for the result and their approval of his proposal that it should be announced after the meeting.

The Moriarty report stated that “the party leaders and Mr Quinn collectively approved the recommendation made by Mr Lowry, that exclusive negotiations should be opened with Esat Digifone”.

Mr Bruton, Mr Spring, Mr De Rossa and Mr Quinn each testified that it was their recollection that Mr Lowry informed them that the GSM competition process had been completed, “that he had a result and that Esat Digifone was the clear winner”, according to the report.

Their evidence was that no reference was made to any financial shortcomings on the part of the recommended winner.

The tribunal’s report stated it was “perhaps not surprising” that the four men “were left with the impression that there was a clear, unconditional and unequivocal outcome”, given the content of the documents Mr Lowry used at the meeting. The tribunal had reservations about the content of the documents.

The Irish Timescontacted the members of the former cabinet subcommittee yesterday, but Mr Bruton, Mr Spring and Mr De Rossa declined to comment.