Republican News · Thursday 1 November 2001

Taking the Michael

BY ROBBIE MacGABHANN

Disgraced former Fine Gael minister, fundraiser and tax evader Michael Lowry made his second appearance at the Moriarty Tribunal this week. Two years have passed since Lowry appeared and in that time an ever growing web of his complex and at times bizarre financial transactions have been prized open to public scrutiny.

Up for debate first at the Tribunal was Lowry's involvement in a $50,000 donation to Fine Gael from Telenor, one of the communications companies who successfully won the lucrative second mobile phone licence, awarded coincidentally by Lowry.

Next up were the details of Lowry's personal finances, which saw an array of transactions involving business acquaintances who just happened to be either employees of Esat Digifone, winners of the second mobile phone licence, and its founder Denis O'Brien.

Lowry was adamant that the awarding of that mobile phone licence was not subject to interference by him. He said that there was "outrageous innuendo and gossip" about the awarding of the licence to Esat. Lowry had no problem with accepting the $50,000 donation from Esat because of the fact that he was "the one who knew exactly what happened".

"Acts of friendship" was how Lowry described his bizarre property and financial dealings. Michael, it seems, wanted to buy a house in Dublin, so rather than approach an auctioneer like you or me he went to ten property developers to keep an eye out for a suitable property.

One such developer found a house for Lowry, bought it and in a market where property prices were rising rapidly, sold the house to Lowry for cost at £200,000. David Austin, who had received the $50,000 donation from Esat and who had also bought a Spanish holiday home from Esat chief executive Denis O'Brien, lent Lowry £147,000 to renovate his new home.

The loan details were handwritten in a short note, which Lowry never revealed to any of his legal or financial advisers. Lowry himself had £140,000 in a Channel Islands account hidden from the Revenue Commissioners. The fact that he forgot to tell this to the Tribunal in 1999 was "unintentional". That's all right so, Michael. We all forget about the odd £150,000 now and then. Something tells me this will not be Lowry's last Tribunal appearance and one wonders what unintentionally overlooked details will come up next.