Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

It appears that campaign, that series of interviews, was organised and orchestrated not by the Fianna Fáil press office but by the Government press secretary, whose job and whose official function is to act as a spokesperson for the Taoiseach and Government. This is not what one would expect from Ministers in a democratically elected Parliament in this country.

The purpose of the attacks by Fianna Fáil Ministers was perfectly clear. It was a diversionary tactic to persuade people not to look at the evidence, at the crumbling credibility of the Taoiseach or at the complete absence of any credible paper trail for his stories of large cash lodgements to personal accounts. Instead, they wanted people to look at the mud they were throwing. What I would have liked to have heard from the Fianna Fáil Ministers is the answer to a simple question. Do they believe the Taoiseach's accounts that he is giving under oath in the tribunal? These courageous broadcasters will never answer that particular question.

Of course this campaign could not happen by accident. The Taoiseach has sought to undermine the tribunal, including accusations that it was trying to "stitch him up". He has complained on the public airwaves that he does not get the same fair hearing as other witnesses at the tribunal. The situation got so farcical that Fianna Fáil Ministers now want to dictate to the tribunal what questions it should ask and what it should not ask. That approach represents a blatant attempt to intimidate the work of the tribunal and should be rejected by all right-minded supporters of democracy in this House.

Time and again, the tribunal has had to remind the Taoiseach why it was investigating his finances and why it had to examine him in public about these issues. On 20 December the chairman, Judge Mahon, laid it out clearly and I quote his words:

I'll try and explain it. The evidence the tribunal has from Mr. Gilmartin is that he was told by Mr. O'Callaghan that sums of £30,000 and £50,000 had been paid to you [the Taoiseach]. Mr. O'Callaghan denies saying it and he denies paying it and you deny receiving it. But that prompted necessarily the tribunal, as it has done in similar instances involving other witnesses, in this and other modules.

It necessarily prompted the tribunal to look at your personal finances. When the tribunal looked at your personal finances it sees the lodgements that we're talking about. And that necessitates the inquiry and the level of inquiry that has been conducted since. That is the basis for the probing of your finances.

Despite this very clear explanation, a series of Fianna Fáil Ministers queued up to go on the airwaves to attack the work and method of work of the tribunal.

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