THE Government is actively considering a tribunal of inquiry to bring into the public domain further information about the Dunnes Stores payments-to-politicians controversy.
This follows the publication of Judge Gerard Buchanan's interim report which names only four persons as beneficiaries of money from the bank accounts examined by accountants Price Waterhouse.
They are Mr Michael Lowry and three members of Mr Charles J. Haughey's immediate family. Mr Ben Dunne also made three payments to the Fine Gael party.
Pressed by Opposition, leaders to set up a judicial inquiry, the Taoiseach told the Dail yesterday that the Government would consider as a matter of urgency the "ultimate procedure to be used to get all the relevant information into the public domain".
The Fianna Fail leader, Mr Bertie Ahern, indicated that it "does not suit my party or me" to have the information drip-fed in the run-up to the election.
The Cabinet spent much time at yesterday's meeting investigating the powers required to procure for public scrutiny the affidavit sworn by Mr Dunne in High Court proceedings, but never read out in court.
It is understood that Government members will continue their discussions today.
There was no direct reference in Judge Buchanan's report yesterday to the allegation that a senior Fianna Fail figure received £1.1 million from Mr Dunne in the early 1990s.
Judge Buchanan said he had been informed by Dunnes Stores that an affidavit was sworn by Mr Dunne in High Court proceedings, "but the content of the affidavit cannot be revealed as that would be contempt of court and I have not seen the same".
Total payments made from bank accounts which Mr Dunne controlled amounted to £5.63 million, according to the interim report. Almost two-thirds of the transactions, 63 per cent, involved payments where the beneficiary could not be identified.
Some 18 per cent of payments were made to persons such as employees who, the judge said, were not relevant to his examination. A further 19 per cent were payments made to other identified or alleged beneficiaries.
The report noted three payments made to "persons with similar names to relatives of a former public representative, Mr Charles J. Haughey".
Mrs Maureen Haughey, Mr Haughey's wife, informed the judge that a cash cheque for £20,000, dated June 14th, 1989, and lodged with the EBS, Malahide, on June 17th, 1989, represented an unsolicited contribution given towards election expenses incurred by her husband during the 1989 general election campaign.
Mr Ciaran Haughey, son of the former Taoiseach, confirmed that he received a cash cheque for £10,000 on October 1st, 1988, which he endorsed. This money was paid to him by Mr Dunne in relation to his helicopter business.
The judge was told that Mr Dunne gave Father Eoghan Haughey OMI, brother of the former Taoiseach, a donation of £2,000 for Masses.
Mr Dunne made four payments, amounting to £139,174, to Mr Lowry, as already admitted in his personal Dail statement in December. Same £76,674 of that total involved a cheque to Faxhill Homes Ltd in respect of the third architects' certificate for work on his Holycross home.
Judge Buchanan stated that in its reply to his queries on these payments, Dunnes Stores had stated that a further certificate marked "fourth and final" had recently come to light. This certificate showed that the total value of the work carried out amounted to £395,109.19, including VAT.
