The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Burke, has responded with great alacrity to the demands by the Opposition and, indeed, by this newspaper, for a comprehensive statement on reports that he received money from at least one building contractor. That is to his credit. The thrust of Mr Burke's statement is that he has been a victim of "a campaign of calumny and abuse." In stark, categorical terms he states: "I have not done anything illegal, unethical or improper". Mr Burke concludes his statement with a thinly veiled warning to the media that he is ready to take legal action if what he terms the "rumours and the innuendos" persist. Mr Burke would understandably prefer if the media would now let the matter drop and allow him to proceed with the more important issues of State and government. The problem for Mr Burke is that his statement - clearly designed to be his closing words on the matter - raises as many questions as it answers. The facts, as presented by Mr Burke, bear repetition. In the course of the 1989 election campaign, a man he had never previously met gave him a cheque for £30,000 on behalf of his employers, Joseph Murphy Structural Engineers (JMSE). Mr Michael Bailey, of Bovale Developments, one of Ireland's leading construction companies, also attended. Mr Burke states that he never made any representations on behalf of JMSE and/or Bovale and his word cannot be contradicted. But he must also appreciate that a political contribution on this scale, apparently out of the blue - at a time when he was Minister for Industry, Commerce and Communications - will, at the very least, raise questions.
There is also one curious omission in Mr Burke's statement. Several reports have suggested that Mr Burke donated £10,000 of the £30,000 contribution to Fianna Fail central funds but the Minister makes no reference to this. The publication of the relevant extracts from Fianna Fail party accounts would help to clear up this issue. For his part, Mr Burke can help his own case by making himself available for interview to the media. For the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, the whole affair must be more than troublesome. Mr Ahern has moved to distance his party from the Haughey years and has placed great store on the need for the highest standards in public life. But there is a clear danger - notwithstanding Mr Burke's robust statement of defence yesterday - that the affair will fuel further cynicism about the relationship between politics and business. It is difficult to remain unmoved by the idea of building industry figures dropping sums of this magnitude into any politician's drawing room.
Mr Ahern did dispatch his then chief whip to investigate the matter while in opposition but his response to the plethora of reports about Mr Burke and the donation, since his appointment to the Cabinet, is unknown. Mr Ahern will want to clear up this troublesome business before the Stormont talks resume in mid-September. He would be well advised to ensure that his new Fianna Fail is not just clean but capable of being shown to be clean. His best course, in order to secure that end, would be to throw open the party accounts and to put all the available information about payments to Mr Burke into the public domain.
