With a Little Help from My Friends

This is a book about greed. It is a blow-by-blow account of the rise of corruption in Irish politics and planning, focusing in particular on the unholy alliance forged between crooked politicians, planners and builders in the Greater Dublin area. Paul Cullen offers the first comprehensive account of planning corruption in Dublin. He draws together the various strands investigated by the Flood Tribunal in a coherent narrative, built upon the manoeuvres of a self-serving and secret network of selfish, greedy men. He traces the repeated attempts to expose the irregularities that many suspected and none could prove. He reminds us of the crippling effect of planning corruption on the lives of ordinary citizens. He recalls the early days of Flood, when it appeared to be going nowhere. Then Frank Dunlop began to sing. And Dunlop's song led on to greater things: to George Redmond being nabbed at Dublin Airport coming back from the Isle of Man with IR Punt300,000 in his bag; to Liam Lawlor going to jail; to the exposure of Ray Burke's interesting accounting and banking practices; to the lowdown - at last - on the builders Brennan and McGowan.
There is also the grand guignol of James Gogarty. Sometimes angry, sometimes unwittingly hilarious, always gripping, this is a terrific read. Other books by Paul Cullen Insider's Guide to Dublin Wicklow and the Boyne.