INSTITUTIONALISED SLEAZE and corruption had been rife in the State, Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams claimed.

“It was not just political life that was corrupt,” he added. “So, too, was the business elite.”

Together, said Mr Adams, they formed golden circles of self-interest dedicated to preserving their wealth, privilege and power.

He said the corruption had not begun 20 years ago with other tribunals. Institutional corruption and gombeenism were part and parcel of British colonial rule on the island and the practices survived and thrived in the post-colonial period. Republican Liam Mellows, he said, had warned of that development in the treaty debates, when he predicted that men would get into positions of power and desire to remain there.

Mr Adams said power had been abused on the basis of self-interest and not in the interests of citizens.

Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan said he understood that the Garda Commissioner had already referred the [tribunal] report to the Criminal Assets Bureau for urgent attention.

He said the Government would be taking all the steps it could to ensure all future costs of the tribunal to the taxpayer were minimised.

He added he would shortly be writing to tribunal chairman Judge Alan Mahon to determine how the administrative costs could be reduced in the final phase of its work.

People before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett said the tribunal confirmed a rotten political culture had dominated the State for the best part of 30 years.

Councillors from the main political parties had been open to bribes from bagmen working for developers. Mr Boyd Barrett said corruption, bribery, sleaze and greed were endemic in the political culture.

“Both of the major political parties, which have dominated this State since its foundation, were implicated to a very considerable degree,” he added.