Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

I hope this answers the questions.

Yesterday, I was informed that I had referred to a dormant account. I was trying to be complete in the information and a journalist who was doing his job for Independent Newspapers said they had information that the dormant account contained €30,000. I will explain to the House for completeness. In the 1970s, I wanted to cash a cheque but the Bank of Ireland in Clonliffe Road would not cash it as I did not have an account. I therefore opened an account which I never closed and I believe it contains €20 or £20. This is the dormant account.

I received a call yesterday evening from another journalist to say that the Fianna Fáil Party sold a house in Amiens Street in the 1980s. He asked me whether I had the money from the sale of that house in my dormant account. The house was sold by the trustees and officers of the party and I probably was a trustee. The money is in the accounts. I have been asked a series of other questions and all I can do is answer them. I am not accusing the Opposition in that regard.

It is clear that the file and all the information I gave to the tribunal is in the hands of at least one newspaper. They obtained all the information. They would have been aware of the issue about the house. As late as yesterday, a person who was a witness on one of the forms used by Michael Wall to do with the purchase of the house was contacted. The only place that would have appeared was on the disclosure that Michael Wall would have given.

What I am up against is that on the one side I am told not to give all the information that I dealt with in the tribunal and on the other side all the information I gave to the tribunal is in the public domain in the hands of some people. That is the difficulty and it is a dilemma. I can only answer the questions. If I came in here last week raising the issue about how I got my house, every bit of paper might have been sought. If the Committee of Public Accounts or the Comptroller and Auditor General wanted to examine my house, to be frank, I would be far happier if that was where it was being examined than where it is being examined, but that is another day's work.

I have no problem showing my file on the house to Deputy Kenny or anybody else if he wants to see it. I know he is only asking his questions, but that is the problem for me. I cannot close this down because people will continue to ask the next question. People will continue to put pressure on my colleagues in government, the Progressive Democrats, totally unfairly. I rented the house. I subsequently bought the house. I paid full rent on it. I have given to the tribunal the procedures that I followed in the work that was done on the house, the invoices to do with the house. I will wake up one of these mornings to see them in the newspapers too, I have no doubt, because it seems as if everything I gave in is out. That is how I feel about it. I can do nothing about it and I can do nothing about the other issues.

The only question I cannot answer to the House is that I cannot name the 25 people. I just cannot do that. I do not know precisely who they are and I cannot put them forward. All I can——

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