Tom Gilmartin (businessman)
Tom Gilmartin | |
---|---|
Born | Thomas Patrick Gilmartin 11 March 1935 County Sligo, Ireland |
Died | 22 November 2013 County Cork, Ireland | (aged 78)
Nationality | Irish[1] |
Occupation | Businessman |
Known for | Involvement in Mahon Tribunal |
Tom Gilmartin (11 March 1935 – 22 November 2013) was an Irish businessman,
Biography
Originally from County Sligo, Gilmartin grew up on a small farm at Lislary, near Grange.[1] He left Ireland for England in 1957 and developed a mechanical engineering business in Luton serving local car makers such as Vauxhall Motors.[5] Often wrongly referred to as a builder, Gilmartin had never been involved in building, but had a great talent for putting together development schemes in the United Kingdom and introducing institutional investment to get them off the ground.
Property development and corruption
Motivated by concern that beggars in the UK were Irish like himself, he returned to Ireland in the late 1980s to create local jobs. In Ireland he encountered corruption from politicians while attempting to create 20,000 jobs through the development of two shopping areas in the
After being forced by AIB Bank to cede control of 60% of his development company to them and Cork developer Owen O'Callaghan, Gilmartin's experience became even worse. Gilmartin suspected O'Callaghan's associate,
Return to Britain
Gilmartin returned to Britain after his forced exit from his own project.
Gilmartin was subjected to an unprecedented campaign of vilification by government ministers, prominent journalists and commentators, and wealthy business interests, when he returned to Ireland to give evidence to the Mahon Tribunal about his experiences in trying to get his development off the ground.[11] The stress sustained contributed to him needing quadruple bypass surgery.[1] The Tribunal found his evidence to be truthful, and accepted that much of what he alleged was, in fact, true. The final Tribunal report was held to be a complete vindication of him, despite the efforts of powerful people to portray him as a malevolent fantasist.[6][12]
Gilmartin moved to County Cork, where he died as a result of heart failure in November 2013.[1][3] Hundreds turned out in Grange, County Sligo, and at Urris, County Donegal, to pay their respects.[11]
See also
Reading Source
Connolly Frank, Gilmartin, Gill & Macmillan, Dublin 12, 2014,
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g "Great debt of gratitude owed to Sligo man Tom Gilmartin". Sligo Today. 30 March 2012. Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
- ^ a b Clifford, Michael (5 October 2013). "The lone voice of the whistleblower". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 5 October 2013.
- ^ a b c d Riegel, Ralph (22 November 2013). "Pivotal Mahon witness Tom Gilmartin dies". Irish Independent. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ Keena, Colm (22 November 2013). "Mahon tribunal witness Tom Gilmartin dies: Allegations about payments led to early end of political career of Bertie Ahern". The Irish Times. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ Mulhern, Robert (2 December 2013). "Tom Gilmartin died without the apology he was owed, says son". The Irish Post.
- ^ a b c Gilmartin, Thomas Patrick (26 March 2012). "'Ireland owes my father a debt of gratitude for doing what he has done'". The Irish Times.
- ^ a b "Mahon Tribunal witness Tom Gilmartin dies". RTÉ News. 22 November 2013. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
- ^ a b c "Final Report - The Planning Tribunal" (PDF). The Planning Tribunal. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
- ^ Cusack, Adrian (28 March 2012). "O'Rourke 'feels vindicated' by Mahon Tribunal report". Westmeath Independent.
- ^ a b "Honourable Gilmartin deserves apology". www.irishexaminer.com. 31 March 2012.
- ^ a b c Lord, Miriam. "A quiet funeral for a brave man the big boys could not bury". The Irish Times.
- ^ Keena, Colm. "Mahon tribunal witness Tom Gilmartin dies". The Irish Times.