Businessman and close associate of Bertie Ahern denied that the ‘B/T’ account was the “Betie and Tim” account |
Mr. Tim Collins, close friend to the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, answered questions today about the real meaning behind the ‘B/T’ account from which Celia Larkin received an unsecured loan of 30,000 pounds. Senior Counsel for the Tribunal asked him, “whether or not the B/T account is in fact the first name of the two account holders, Bertie Ahern and Tim Collins.”
The Tribunal was silent as Mr. Collins reiterated, that the initials stood for ‘the building trust’ account, an account set up for the renovation of Bertie Ahern’s constituency office in Drumcondra, St. Lukes.
The three judges, Mahon, Faherty and Keyes endeavoured to clarify questions put to the sole beneficiary of the so-called ‘B/T’ account, unfortunately, Mr. Collins was unable to assist the Inquiry into many of the account’s transactions, particularly a transaction during 1993: it was around this time that a statement was allegedly made that B/A had been paid a bribe of 30,000 pounds and another payment of 50,000 pounds.
Later the current treasurer of the ‘B/T’ Dominic Dillane was cross-examined about his administration of one of the 26 Fianna Fail Cumann in the Dublin central constituency