Secret diaries of Haughey years destroyed by secretary

A close friend and former long-time private secretary to Mr Charles Haughey said yesterday she destroyed her personal diaries to stop the Moriarty tribunal gaining possession of them.

Ms Catherine Butler also gave evidence to the tribunal which conflicted directly with evidence already heard from another of Mr Haughey's former private secretaries, Ms Eileen Foy, in relation to the controversial Fianna Fail party leader's account.

Ms Butler said that in 1992, after Mr Haughey had resigned as Taoiseach, she helped Ms Foy to gather the records in relation to the account, pack them in a number of Arnotts shopping bags, and bring them out to Ms Foy's car which was parked at Government Buildings. She also said that during a meeting in a pub in Co Kildare in the summer of 1998, Ms Foy told her she had subsequently destroyed the records.

Ms Foy strongly rejected Ms Butler's evidence. "That's just rubbish," she said. In July, Ms Foy told the tribunal she had not seen the files since around the time of Mr Haughey's resignation in 1992.

Ms Butler said she first met Mr Haughey when she was just 17 years old and worked in his private office from 1981 to 1992. She said she was a close friend of Mr Haughey and his family, and regularly spent Saturday and Sunday mornings in his Kinsealy home.

She had not spoken with Mr Haughey since she held her first meeting with the tribunal's legal team last September. Ms Butler said she kept diaries which contained the "utmost personal political secrets of Charles Haughey", entries to do with her personal and family life, and impressions and reflections on the various controversies which occurred over the years.

Shortly after meeting Ms Foy in Co Kildare, she tore up the diaries and threw them in the bin. She did this prior to being contacted by the tribunal, but aware that they might contain information relevant to the Moriarty inquiry. She said she did not want to be drawn into the tribunal.

Ms Butler was also questioned about the signing of cheques on the party leader's account. Ms Foy had responsibility for administering the account, but the two women worked in close proximity, and shared offices up to 1990.

Ms Butler said that up to 1987, when Fianna Fail was in opposition, Mr Ahern as party whip had offices next to hers and Ms Foy's, and it was easy for Ms Foy to find him and ask him to sign cheques. It was only on rare occasions that he would be asked to sign blank cheques, she said.

In the period 1987 to 1990, when Mr Ahern was a minister, it was more difficult to locate him and the practice of signing blank cheques grew. In January 1990, the Republic took over the EU presidency and it became extremely difficult to get an appointment with Mr Ahern. For this reason more blank cheques were signed. This continued to be the practice up to Mr Haughey's resignation in February 1992.

Ms Butler said she had once witnessed Mr Ahern sign a complete book of blank cheques. Asked how she was so sure, she said it occurred around February 1991. "It was a new cheque book. I sat at a round table next to Bertie Ahern and beside Eileen Foy as he did it.

"He signed the whole cheque book. We had discussions about the new offices. I'm very clear on that. It was a new cheque book and we sat at a round table. I sat next to Mr Ahern and beside Ms Foy as he did it," Ms Butler said.

Earlier in the day, Ms Butler's evidence in statement form was put to Ms Foy who concluded her evidence yesterday.

Mr John Coughlan SC, for the tribunal, said that Ms Butler in her memo said that between 1987 and 1990, there were a number of occasions when Ms Foy asked Mr Ahern to sign a number of blank cheques in advance for administrative convenience.

Earlier Mr Richard Nesbitt SC, for Ms Foy, asked his client if the office was always busy. She agreed it was and that Mr Haughey worked hard. Mr Nesbitt said it boiled down to an administrative chore of writing the cheque and then rounding up people to sign it. Ms Foy agreed.

Mr Nesbitt asked if anybody has explained to her how the leader's allowance account came into existence. Ms Foy said she inherited it and had no idea how long it had been in existence.