Lawlor To Return To Liechtenstein On Orders Of Flood Tribunal

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

01 February 2002

Disgraced former politician, Liam Lawlor, is to be frogmarched back to Liechtenstein to personally collect documentation relating to the epic Flood Tribunal in Ireland.

Mr Lawlor, formerly of the Fianna Fail party, stands accused of taking cash bribes for votes on rezoning, and has been notoriously unhelpful throughout the investigation. Despite having promised to reveal all and clear his name during the Flood Tribunal, Lawlor made several trips to the High Court and the Supreme Court in order to set the boundaries for the Flood Tribunal's inquiries into his affairs.

However, the Lucan-based Deputy now appears to have fallen foul of the stringent banking secrecy provisions favoured in Liechtenstein, where he held several accounts containing suspect payments with his son, Niall.

Despite having requested documentation regarding a particular period in the early 1990's, the bank failed to furnish the court with what it required, resulting in two seven day jail terms for Mr Lawlor, who was deemed to be in breach of discovery orders.

However, the disgraced TD told the High Court earlier this week that he is willing to go and request the documentation in person, in order that the 'misplaced suspicion' regarding his apparent lack of co-operation throughout the investigation can be 'wholly dispelled'.

He told the court that he could only suppose that the bank had not ascribed to his request the proper importance, and dismissed suggestions that it was assisting him in preventing the Tribunal from achieving full and proper discovery.

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