Mr Ganley also denied claims that he had connections with the US-based
conservative Catholic group called Legatus, “or anything [that] sounds like
that”.http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0929/1224255442170.html
Given that Mr Ganley had office space in the Brussels building owned by Legatus Ireland Chairman, Garrett Kelleher's Shelbourne Development and a senior Libertas source has alledged that Kelleher sat in on a planning meeting at those office on 3 December 2008 where Libertas planning for 2009 was discussed, this blogger is now calling Ganley on his deniel.
He ceratinly has had connections with Legatus chairman Garret Kelleher.
Of this meeting McGuirk's comment of early this morning was
One meeting, alleged by one presumably anonymous source, of which you have no minute. Versus an on the record clarification of all your questions.
In fact John McGuirk, the Libertas spokesperson, had not clarified all my questions and he has failed to comment on Kelleher's role in Libertas at all.
He did say Libertas paid full market rate for the offices but had NO comment on why Kelleher was at a Libertas planning meeting.
In the same Irish Times article it was revealed that hedge fund boss Odey was also funding a fundmentalist Chriatian party
Mr Odey has contributed £25,000 to a political organisation described as “the Christian Party Proclaiming Christs Lordship” this year and £57,000 to the Conservative Party since 2007.
What is more McGuirk stated to people korps that no press were interested in the story about Legatus implying that this blogger's story was of no interest to the mainstream media
Where are the press on your great exclusive?
In light of the fact that Irish Times most senior political journalist, DEAGLÁN DE BRÉADÚN, had discussed Legatus with Ganley and the digital edition of the Irish Times was on line this indicates that McGuirk was either not informed by his boss, Declan Ganley, that the mainstream media were interested in the story or that he could intimidate Libertas Nein Danke into retracting the story before the morning papers hit the shops.
he did attempt to both cajole and bully this blogger into retracting the story.
You can withdraw your story, now PK. It doesn't stand up at all. You have little credibility to begin with,
Libertas Nein Danke stands over its original story that Libertas are a fundementalist Christian party with links to Tom Monaghan's legatus both practically and ideologically. They are backed by unelected elites and seek to undermine democracy and Ireland to further a fundementalist far right private agenda.
Orinigal story here
Declan Ganley and Legatus: Extreme christian group and Libertas links exposed through Irish property developer Garrett Kelleher
Irish Times Story in full below
Ganley accuses Lenihan of untruths over funding
DEAGLÁN DE BRÉADÚN Political CorrespondentLIBERTAS: ANTI-LISBON campaigner Declan Ganley has clashed with Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan over the sources of his political funding.
Citing a newspaper report, Mr Lenihan said one of Mr Ganley’s main backers was “a London-based hedge fund which would hardly be described as being interested in the economic wellbeing and future of this country”.
He said that, in fact, “quite a number of these hedge funds have taken out specific bets” on the insolvency of Ireland.
“Clearly they see a No vote as assisting a bet which is now failing for them because of the growing international confidence in the country which has taken place in recent weeks as a result of the Nama announcement.”
He called on Mr Ganley “to confirm that this particular outfit who are funding him has no bets on Ireland”. The Minister was referring to a report in the Sunday Independent that a leading British investor, Crispin Odey, who “made hundreds of millions of euro” short-selling Anglo-Irish Bank, had donated almost €18,500 in money and services to Libertas.
Mr Lenihan challenged Mr Ganley to confirm that he was not receiving financial support from people who were “betting against Ireland”. When it was put to him that Fianna Fáil had been funded by property developers, Mr Lenihan said that, since 1997, political donations had been subject to regulation and his party was in compliance with those.
Speaking to journalists later, Mr Ganley said: “First of all, let me make it very clear, the thing that he was commenting on was in response to, I think, a donor that gave to the Libertas party in the UK for the European elections in the UK last June. It was a donor who donated for that purpose and that money was well spent on the British election campaign in time for the European elections. That’s it. It’s got nothing to do with this.”
He said Mr Lenihan was very good at “spouting out” untruths, such as implying that this donation had anything to do with the current referendum campaign.
He said the Minister wanted to distract attention “from the fact that he has been exposed by the international financial media as an economic incompetent”.
Mr Ganley also denied claims that he had connections with the US-based conservative Catholic group called Legatus, “or anything [that] sounds like that”.
Mr Ganley said lobbyists who stood to gain from Lisbon had been “firehosing money at the Yes campaign”. He also denied any suggestion that an Irish-based property group had provided Libertas with free offices in Brussels. “They didn’t provide us with anything that we had in Brussels, we rented and we paid top euro for it.”
Responding earlier on RTÉ Radio’s News at One, Mr Ganley said Mr Lenihan had “chickened out” of a debate with him and he described the claim by the Minister as “nonsense”.
Libertas said: “This is a stupid, laughable smear, especially coming from a party that took hundreds of thousands from the developers, bankers, and crooks who’ve led us into this mess. Hypocrisy is not a strong enough word.”
Odey fund defends donations
The chief executive of Odey Asset Management in London has defended donations by hedge fund manager Crispin Odey (inset) to Libertas. “This is a private donation that has been made by a private individual and has been declared,” David Stewart told The Irish Times .
Criticising Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan, Mr Stewart said: “It is so wrong to use it like this. I don’t understand it, but that’s the trouble with politicians. There are lots of half-truths about.
“There appears to be some misunderstanding about this. This has been picked up as an Irish issue,” said Mr Stewart, adding that the donation was made last year to help Libertas’s European Parliament campaign in many EU states.
“He [Mr Odey] supports people who he thinks are doing a good job. He supports people who put their heads above the parapet.”
Mr Odey, who contributed £3,000 in cash to Libertas.eu and made three non-cash donations totalling £13,964 received an annual bonus of almost €28 million last year from Odey Asset Management, which he founded.
That was largely because he took short positions on banks – ie bet that their share prices would fall.
At the start of this year, he predicted a stock market recovery, one of the first major investors to do so. Last week, he advised his clients that the stock market would continue on its upward trajectory thanks to government policy and quantitative easing.
Oxford-educated Mr Odey is married to Nichola Pease, the chief executive of JO Hambro Capital Management and part of the family that founded Barclays Bank.
The couple are listed at 272 in the Sunday Times list of the richest people in Britain and Ireland, with a combined worth of £204 million. Mr Odey has threatened to leave London over personal tax rates.
Mr Odey has contributed £25,000 to a political organisation described as “the Christian Party Proclaiming Christs Lordship” this year and £57,000 to the Conservative Party since 2007.
This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times
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