The investigation was about bullying in the workplace and not a about footbridge across the Garavogue, which was "a smokescreen," County Manager Hubert Kearns told the meeting.

He said that Clr. Bree, in his statement to the council meeting, "conveniently forgot to mention" that the proposal was for a bridge and a right of way in perpetuity from the Connaughton Road area to Quay Street Car Park.

"Clearly, that had huge value," the Manager said.

"What the investigation was about was bullying in the workplace, and people who have sat through meetings know what I am talking about," Mr. Kearns said.

He described the issue of the bridge in relation to the matter as "a smokescreen" by Clr. Bree.

Mr. Kearns said the question of whether the proposed pedestrian bridge was a good idea came down to a couple of questions. One was whether it was good value for the town. Mr. Kearns said that to provide that bridge would be good planning. The Department of the Environment had supported it and thought that it was an excellent idea.

He also said the staff of the council had valued the cost of providing the bridge. It involved the council paying only portion of the cost of the bridge and it was excellent value. The people of Sligo would have been able to use that bridge for hundreds of years, in perpetuity. The arrangement was perfectly legitimate in that the law of the land allowed the council to make arrangements with private developers.

He said that clearly this footbridge was going to be of some benefit to the hotel and the apartments but clearly would be more valuable to the people who would use it for hundreds of years.

He also said that, clearly, it was a matter for the council members to decide on it.

Mr. Kearns also said it was plainly wrong for anybody to suggest there was anything untoward or illegal.

"There was no evidence of any staff member doing anything even remotely wrong," Mr. Kearns said. Rather, he added, they were trying "to improve this town as best they could."

And if there was anything wrong, that should have been reported to the gardai," he said.

Mr. Kearns said he wrote to Clr. Bree and asked him to elaborate what was wrong with the plan.