Can't See The Tweedswood For The Trees

national | crime and justice | news report

Monday October 09, 2006 20:46

by Seán Ryan & Elaine

Another scandal is about to hit the party that holds the patent for sleeze within politics. This time it's Tony Dempsey who's in the firing seat. Dempsey has lied to the Dáil on at least one occasion in his annual declaration.

Is this the death knell for Fianna Fáil?

Tony Dempsey

Bertie Ahern has lots of problems at the moment. A piece by our own Chekov Feeney in Village Magazine, has highlighted the fact that most of the media in this country have dropped everything else and have focussed exclusively on Bertie’s dilemma. This piece will not focus on Bertie’s dilemma, but it will add to it.

We were in Wexford earlier in the summer and we met up with and talked to a disgruntled journalist from the area that was very upset about having material consistently refused for publication, even though the material was substantiated and was definitely of interest to the public. Our conversation with this journalist started us on the track to uncovering the following story.

Tony Dempsey TD for Fianna Fáil has made false declarations on his finances over the last number of years. The astounding thing about this is that all of this has been in the public domain for years. This is easily substantiated and it requires only a little effort. It seems that the media in general have gone out of their way to avoid having to expose it.

Tweedswood Ltd. is a name that will soon become very well known. Tweedswood is a medium sized business.

In the summer of this year AIB admitted that they had overcharged by a massive amount, interest owed on a loan taken out by Tweedswood. The AIB admitted in writing, to overcharging around €66,000. The Bank manager is and was Philip McDermot. After this admission, Tweedswood hired the specialist firm Bankcheck from Belfast to forensically examine bank statements for evidence of overcharging. It is interesting to note that Tweedswood had to go to Belfast (out of the jurisdiction of the Republic) to find a company that would investigate the AIB, even though AIB had already admitted to overcharging. Bankcheck found that the AIB had overcharged by €466,000. Bankcheck has said that this is the highest claim it has ever made against a bank on this side of the border.
http://www.unison.ie/stories.php3?ca=184&si=1640575

We have obtained papers from the CRO (Companies Registration Office) that gives us a breakdown on Tweedswood over a number of years. This paperwork gives us shareholder and directorship details. The pictures published here are just a sample few of the documents we obtained from the CRO.

In 2003 Tony Dempsey in his Dáil declaration omitted the fact that he was a shareholder in Tweedswood Ltd. The truth of the matter is however, that Tony Dempsey did possess shares in Tweedswood over this period.
Register of Interests of Members of Dáil Éireann 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2003 http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=2883&CatID=20

In 2004 Tony Dempsey admitted to the fact that he was a shareholder in Tweedswood in his Dáil declaration.
Register of Interests of Members of Dáil Éireann 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2004 http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=3831&CatID=20

In 2005 Tony Dempsey admitted he had shares in Tweedswood. This was printed in Village Magazine in its 13-19 May 2005 edition. However on May 16 of the same year, the Wexford People published a different perspective on this. I’ll quote the full article here as it’s a short one – it was to be found on page two:
‘Dempsey’s shares portfolio revealed – DEPUTY Tony Dempsey has shares in a diverse list of companies, ranging from building societies to exploration firms, according to “The Village” magazine.
In a list of politicians with shares, the magazine says the Wexford deputy has a stake in Providence (exploration), Eircom, Arcon (exploration), Irish Permanent, First Active, Norwich Union and Tweedswood Developments/Construction.
“The last one is wrong, the rest are correct,” said Deputy Dempsey. “As a TD you have to declare all your shareholding, all your financial interests, and I have declared mine,” said Deputy Dempsey.’
Register of Members Interests of Dáil Éireann for period 1st January, 2005 to 31st December http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=5260
http://www.unison.ie/wexford_people/stories.php3?ca=38&...12496

If he had no shares in Tweedswood at this point, has he paid Capital Gains Tax?

In Ireland On Sunday on the 27th February 2005 there was a story with the headline: “TD who was paid €36,000 in travel and overnight expenses has Dublin home.” Other than tell us that Dempsey had claimed more expenses than anyone else, it tells us that ‘Mr. Dempsey also owns a number of holiday homes and development properties in Co. Wexford.’ What development properties?

In his 2005 declaration Dempsey says he has shares in Tweedswood. However he amends this statement to add that this is a subject of litigation. What litigation?

Let’s go back to the overcharging scandal, initiated and enacted by the AIB.

Why did Tony Dempsey fail to bring this national scandal to the attention of the Dáil? After all Dempsey did at one point claim to be a shareholder in Tweedswood in 2005.

Why did another Wexford TD Paul Kehoe for Fine Gael, not bring this to the attention of the Dáil? Especially when he was quoted as saying: ‘When I heard about this case it frightened me.’ He went on to say: ‘A small firm being overcharged to the extent they have told me is totally unacceptable and I will, on the company’s behalf, do all I can to highlight this case.’

Why did it fall to a TD from Mayo Jerry Cowley to bring it up? He had this to say in the Dáil on July 6 2006:
“I seek the adjournment of the Dáil
under Standing Order 31 to raise a matter of
national importance, namely, how AIB Wexford
could overcharge a small business, Tweedswood
Ltd. in Wexford, so much that it almost went into
bankruptcy last week; that AIB has admitted this
overcharging but disputes the amount of \460,000
on foot of overcharging calculated by a specialist
company Bank-Check of Belfast and is offering
\66,000 as the amount overcharged; to ask how
much overcharging is going on and how this can
happen, despite legislation and a financial regu-
lator; whether legislation can be brought forward
to protect the citizen who has little remedy before
he can take action, as the courts and the Ombuds-
man can take at least a year to deal with such
matters; and the lack of independent audit of the
banks to ensure they are accountable.”
http://66.102.9.104/search?q=cache:ImSOyHbbeIMJ:debates...&cd=6

We contacted Martin Power to put some of the questions that have arisen to him. He declined to answer us.

Under what scheme of ethics does Tony Dempsey operate?

Tony Dempsey is after all a member of the Ethics Committee in the Dáil. How did he get onto this committee? He would have to have been vetted after all. Banks would have been contacted. The Revenue would have been asked about him too. Does he have some special friends in the Revenue?

Why did Tony Dempsey decide to withdraw from the selection process that would have guaranteed that he’d run in the next election? This decision was announced in October of 2005 and caused widespread confusion and upset in Fianna Fáil and in Wexford, where Dempsey is only the second TD for Fianna Fáil from Wexford to be elected since the foundation of the State. The Wexford Echo dated Wednesday 26th October 2005 on page 33 puts it much more succinctly when they ask ‘Was Tony Dempsey shafted by Fianna Fáil?’
http://www.unison.ie/wexford_echo/stories.php3?ca=38&si...13264

Before Dempsey announced that he would not be running in the next election, he had a meeting with Bertie Ahern. He said that Bertie had been ‘disappointed’ at the news. He said he was withdrawing, as he wanted to pursue interests outside the political arena.

We believe on the other hand that Dempsey withdrew from the process not because he wanted to pursue anything, but that he was being pursued by his shady dealings and that they were rapidly catching up with him. We note that he did not withdraw from the Ethics Committee as holding this position could possibly prevent his past from catching up with him.

Another massive Fianna Fáil cover-up is under way.

We call for this matter to be investigated in its entirety. We are very certain that what we have published is only the very tip of the iceberg, and that the rot goes much deeper.