Tag Archives: INM

rea1gemmatalbot(Stephen Rae, editor-in-chief of the Irish Independent, Sunday Independent and Evening Herald and, above, Gemma O’Doherty and a protest outside INM ,Talbot Street, Dublin following her sacking)

Penalty points were wiped after they were accrued by a car registered to an Independent News and Media editor.
Stephen Rae was involved in the decision to make leading journalist Gemma O’Doherty redundant in the weeks after she approached the Garda commissioner to check if he had penalty points removed from his licence.
A vehicle registered to Rae, editor-in-chief of the Irish Independent and other INM titles, accrued penalty points at 6.37am on November 5, 2009 at the N11, Belfield, Dublin before the points were terminated.

….Her forcing out has brought condemnation from journalists at top British and international publications but has so far been ignored by Ireland’s leading newspapers and RTE.

 

Wiped penalty points linked to editor involved in Gemma O’Doherty redundancy (Robert Mulhern, Irish Post)

Previously:
Did The Editor Have His Points Quashed?

Going Rogue

Dear Mr Rae

(Photocall Ireland)

90314213

90314209Former Garda John Wilson, top, and Eileen O’Brien, Lucia O’Farrell and Catherine Costelloe, above, held a protest over the dismissal of journalist Gemma O’Doherty outside the offices of Independent News and Media on Talbot Street, Dublin earlier today.

John Wilson is one of the Garda whistleblowers who exposed the quashing of penalty points.

He originally made a complaint about the quashing of points through the Garda Confidential Recipient in March 2012, which was sent on to the Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan.

He says after several months passed, and after he received no response from the Commissioner, he contacted United Left Alliance TD Clare Daly. Ms Daly, along with several other TDs, went on to name people who had penalty points quashed in the Dáil, last December.

Lucia O’Farrell, from Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan, lost her 23-year-old son Shane in a hit-and-run on August 2, 2011. The man who struck Shane, Zigimantas Gridzuiska, 39,  had 42 previous convictions in three different jurisdictions, was found not guilty of dangerous driving causing death. Judge Pat McCartan had directed a jury to find him not guilty in Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Judge McCartan ordered him to leave the country.

Catherine Costelloe, from Limerick, used to work with the London Metropolitan Police and when she returned to Limerick she became involved in helping families of missing people. Today she spends much of her time trying to find out the truth behind the cases and to find their bodies with Search For The Missing.

Previously: Dear Mr Rae

Related: The Penalty Points Whistleblower

Please help us find out what happened to our missing sons (Gemma O’Doherty, Irish Independent)

Hit-and-run driver avoids jail term over death of cyclist (Nicola Anderson, Irish Independent)


(Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland)

VINNN

FionnannnPolitical editor of the Irish Independent Fionnan Sheahan appeared on Vincent Browne, alongside Constantin Gurdgiev, finance lecturer at Trinity College and Ian Kehoe, assistant editor of the Sunday Business Post, last night to speak about the Anglo Tapes.

But first there was some ‘sickening’ bias’ business to deal with.

Vincent Browne: “Fionnan, let’s talk a bit about the tapes and their provenance. I gather that you had the tapes, or Independent Newspapers, had the tapes for quite a while before you published them?”

Fionnan Sheahan: “Yeah, we’ve had them for a while. Obviously you’d put a lot of research into a story like this Vincent before putting it out there. That’s normal journalistic practice.”

Browne: “And how long did you have them?”

Sheahan: “For a while.”

Browne: “Can you tell us how long?”

Sheahan: “No.”

Browne: “Why not?”

Sheahan: “Why should I?”

Browne: “Because I’m asking you. And I’m sure…”

Sheahan: “We’ve had them for a while Vincent. And we were using the time, within which to actually, to actually gather information about this, about the significance of it and so on and so forth, and get photographs.”

Browne: “But I’m just asking you ‘how long’, you don’t have to tell us the exact number of days but all right, OK. OK, like if politicians behaved like that…we don’t.”

Sheahan: “No Vincent, you spend so much time showing your bias towards Independent Newspapers, it’s getting sickening at this point.”

Browne: “All right.”

Sheahan: “Can you not just acknowledge it’s a good story and move on. Is that too much for you, is it?”

Browne: “Of course it is a good story.”

Sheahan: “Yeah, right, I didn’t hear you say it.”

Browne: “No, I didn’t say it because it’s not…I don’t have to say it.”

Sheahan: “I’m sick, I’m sick of your attitude towards the Irish Independent.”

Browne: “Do you have a problem?”

Sheahan: “I do, I do Vincent. I do have a problem.”

Browne: “You do?”

Sheahan: “I do, when you bring a colleague of mine in here a couple of weeks ago and just kick him around for your fun. So can you not just acknowledge in this case Vincent, it’s a perfectly good story and let’s talk about it.”

Browne: “Let’s get on with it. And let’s get rid of this problem that you have, or rather let’s ignore it.”

Sheahan: “It’s not a problem I have.”

Browne: “Ignore the problem, let’s get on with it.”

Sheahan: “It’s a problem you have with the Irish Independent.”

Watch here

Noonan1You’ll recall Bank of Ireland and AIB’s debt writedown worth almost €140million for Independent News and Media, 30% of which is owned by Denis O’Brien.

And AIB’s apparent €10million writedown for Thomas Crosbie Holdings.

Namawinelake writes:

“In the Dáil this week, the Minister for Finance Michael Noonan was questioned about the writedowns. The response was curt – “due to data protection rules and customer confidentiality the banks are not in a position to discuss details of individual customer circumstances”

“Alas, data protection won’t save the humiliation of those named-and-shamed on the new personal insolvency register.

“The parliamentary questions and response are here:

“Deputy Pearse Doherty: To ask the Minister for Finance if he will confirm theamount of debt forgiveness that will be provided by Allied Irish Bank to Independent News and Media as part of the latter firm’s recently announced reorganisation plans.

“Deputy Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan: To ask the Minister for Finance if he will state, in both absolute and percentage terms, the amount of the debt being written down by wholly and partly State owned lending institutions for Thomas Crosbie Holdings Ltd. and Independent News and Media Ltd; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

“Deputy Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan: To ask the Minister for Finance the percentage stake the State will now hold through Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland in Independent News and Media Ltd. as a result of the debt for equity swop to facilitate the write down of INM Ltd. debt; and if he will make a statement on the matter.”

“Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan: I propose to answer questions 132, 150 and 152 together.”

“I have been informed that due to data protection rules and customer confidentiality the banks are not in a position to discuss details of individual customer circumstances.”

.

Ah yeah.

Sure what else would he say.

Debt forgiveness by state-banks to billionaires and merchant princes is secret, says Minister Noonan (Namawinelake)

Previously: This Is How Rumours Start

A €140 Million Write-off From Bank Of Ireland And AIB

Photocall Ireland

denisBaloonAnd 100 job losses.

Weeeeeeeeeee

Independent News and Media, of which Denis O’Brien is the biggest shareholder, is to get a debt write-off worth €140 million from Bank of Ireland and AIB.

RTÉ reports:

“A consortium of eight banks including state-owned AIB and Bank of Ireland has agreed to write off almost €140m in debt owed by Independent News and Media.
The move is part of a series of measures being implemented by INM which the company said will reduce its net debt burden from €424m to €118m.
INM is using the €167m proceeds from the sale of its South African business to pay off some of the loans.
It will also raise €40m in new equity by issuing shares in a rights issue – where existing shareholders are offered the chance to buy more stock in proportion to their stakes in the company.”

….
“(Vincent Crowley) said the company will be looking for 100 job cuts as part of its restructuring, and that all structures – including the merger of the Irish Independent and Sunday Independent newsrooms – are being looked at.”

Merger, eh?

That should end well.

INM agrees debt restructuring as losses mount (RTÉ)

Previously: Mwahahaha

INM Write-Down Ahoy

Denis O’Brien: Dividends, Debt And Paying Back Anglo

Eamonn Farrell/Photocall Ireland

Senior Government figures are becoming apprehensive about the prospect of Independent News & Media (INM), Ireland’s largest newspaper group, having some of its debts written off by State-supported banks.

INM, publisher of the Irish Independent and Sunday Independent, owes more than €400 million to a consortium of eight lenders that includes the State-owned Allied Irish Banks and Bank of Ireland, in which the State has a 15 per cent stake.

Financial pressure on INM has led it to enter talks with its banks to restructure this debt. Political and business sources believe a write-down of up to €100 million may be in play.

Awk-ward…

…again.

Unease in Government over INM debt-relief moves (Arthur Beesley, Irish Times)

(Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland)

A case taken by former INM executive Karl Brophy (above) over his dismissal last April as the company’s corporate affairs director has been settled this evening.

Mr Brophy had claimed INM’s largest shareholder Denis O’Brien was behind his dismissal and claimed it was unlawful.

He said he was told his continued employment would be ‘problematic’ because of coverage about O’Brien and the Moriarty Tribunal at that time in INM titles.

He also alleged that he was told he was deemed to be too close to former CEO Gavin O’Reilly – who stepped down last April.

But this evening the case was struck out after the High Court heard the two parties had resolved their differences.

Mr Brophy said he accepted that, in relation to his dismissal, O’Brien had ‘no hand, act of part in that decision’.

However, before Ms Justice Mary Laffoy ended the hearing, the court heard evidence from the newly-appointed INM Chief Operating Officer Vincent Crowley – who took over from Gavin O’Reilly earlier this year.

RTE reports:

Mr Crowley told the court that for some time before his departure, Mr (Gavin) O’Reilly and Mr Brophy were working to try to back up Mr O’Reilly’s view that Mr O’Brien had significant non-performing borrowings with the former Anglo Irish Bank and he was therefore effectively funded by the Irish taxpayer (as Anglo had been nationalised).

The two men put a significant amount of time and effort, which was ultimately unsuccessful, into looking into this allegation so that it could be put into the public domain, Mr Crowley said.

Ultimately unsuccessful, eh?

So, do you know how much Denis owes Anglo?

Lines close at midnight.

Previously: Denis O’Brien, Dividends And Paying Back Anglo

 As for the current investigation, I remain baffled as to how INM [Independent News and Media] remained in ignorance of the editor’s decision to publish.

The day before publication, Mike O’Kane  [Irish Daily Star editor] gave a radio interview in which he announced his intentions. After publication and the subsequent row, the paper’s former editor, Ger Colleran – now managing director of the INM company that runs the paper, and therefore O’Kane’s immediate boss – trenchantly defended the decision to publish. Did O’Kane really keep him in the dark?

Whatever the case, INM’s management was clearly ineffective, and it is that factor that has surely influenced Desmond.”

Desmond Will Not Change His Mind About Ditching The Irish Daily Star (Roy Greenslade, Guardian)