A Sinn Féin TD has used Dail privilege to name a number of politicians named in a dossier of alleged tax evasion.
Mary Lou McDonald named several prominent former TDs, including a number of ministers, during Leaders' Questions this lunchtime.
Enda Kenny said the allegations - raised in a dossier given to TDs by a civil servant whistlebloewr - were now now in the hands of the Gardaí.
Using parliamentary privilege, Mary Lou McDonald named several political figures whose names appeared in the dossier.
A statement from Maire Geoghegan Quinn, who was one of the individuals named, declared: "I have never had an Ansbacher Account. Neither have I ever had an account with Guinness and Mahon Bank."
Des O'Malley has also released a statement:
STATEMENT FROM DESMOND O’MALLEY
I am informed that an allegation was made in Dáil Eireann today by a Sinn Féin Deputy under privilege that my name is on a list of former ministers who allegedly used so-called Ansbacher accounts in order to evade paying tax in Ireland.
This list, and allegations of tax evasion have been extensively investigated already by the Revenue Commissioners, the Gardaí and the Moriarty Tribunal several years ago. Despite this it is being raised again.
The reason for my being on that list is quite simply that I had a particular form of account with Guinness Mahon Bank.
On appointment as Minister for Industry and Commerce in 1977 I was aware that I had shares in some of the companies that I would be dealing with. In order to avoid a conflict of interest and allegations of acting in my capacity as Minister for my personal benefit, I followed a practice that is standard in other countries and put my assets into a blind trust. I was advised at the time that Guinness Mahon Bank had experience of operating such trusts. The nature of a blind trust is that the owner of the assets in the trust (usually held in shares) gives power of attorney for control of his relevant assets to trustees. As the beneficiary I had no knowledge of what stocks or shares were held on my behalf.
I received dividends annually through Guinness Mahon Bank and I paid tax on these in Ireland. My tax affairs remain in full compliance with the Revenue Commissioners. I have never availed of a tax amnesty and indeed opposed it when the Fianna Fáil /Labour government introduced one in 1993.
In 1977 Guinness Mahon was a perfectly respectable bank. I never had any dealings with the late Des Traynor while he was in that bank or otherwise. I never had what is called ‘an Ansbacher account’. I believe that such an account would have been a breach of trust by the bank in its dealings with me.
