Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the publication of the Mahon tribunal report into planning corruption. Its publication was a sad day for politics here and for my party. It was sad for our party to see some of our former members indicted as having been corrupt by the tribunal and it was sad that the tribunal did not believe our former party leader gave a truthful account of moneys to the tribunal.

Both the Mahon and Moriarty tribunals have been ongoing since the late 1990s and during that period they have case a shadow over Irish politics and the business of politics in this country. While we were getting on with business, two tribunals were discussing and investigating practices in Irish politics in the past of which none of us could have been proud. Until such time as those tribunals reported, they cast a shadow over political life here. In many ways, it is a relief to see that both tribunals have now reported. It was a relief when the Mahon tribunal report was issued last week because it brought into the open its adjudications, judgments and decisions on the evidence given over a number of years.

With regard to Fianna Fáil, I and many members feel a sense of betrayal with regard to members of the party - former Ministers, Deputies and councillors - who were found to have taken corrupt payments and to have acted corruptly. This was a betrayal of the party, of politics of our country and of the people who elected them. There is no pride for me in seeing that people who operated within the same party I do undertook and committed such acts. However, Fianna Fáil has acted as strongly as it possibly can in response to the judgments. We moved to expel those who were found to have acted corruptly or against whom serious findings were made by the tribunal. We want to make it clear that there is no place within our party for people who betray the public trust and who do not act in the interest of the public who elected them or in the spirit of the membership of the party who supported and helped them get elected.

I have listened to the comments of Minister of State, Deputy Alan Kelly, and of many other Ministers and Deputies during this debate this week. They refer to Fianna Fáil as if it had been the subject of the findings of the tribunal and as if it found Fianna Fáil to be corrupt. I wish to make it clear that Fianna Fáil is not a corrupt party and neither is its membership. Some members of the party who held very high office within the party have been found against by the tribunal and this fact is a betrayal of the membership of our party and for what our party stands for-----

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