A journalist has told the Disclosures Tribunal that he doubts any of us would be here, if Superintendent Dave Taylor had not encountered his own problems. 

Irish Examiner special correspondent Mick Clifford said the former Garda Press Officer told him that there were text messages on his phones which could have implicated Nóirín O’Sullivan in a smear campaign against Maurice McCabe. 

However the Tribunal has previously heard Superintendent Taylor says the smear campaign was conducted orally, rather than with texts. 

Mick Clifford met Dave Taylor in the summer of 2016 when the Superintendent was suspended from the force and under criminal investigation for leaking information to the media. 

Mr Clifford said the former press officer blamed his demise on Nóirín O’Sullivan - whom he intimated had wanted to get her hands on his phones because the text messages on them would incriminate her. 

The Tribunal has previously heard that Supt Taylor denies saying the smear campaign was conducted by text, which is at odds with Mick Clifford’s position. 

Mr Clifford told the Tribunal he believes Supt Taylor’s decision to come clean about the smear campaign happened after his own troubles - adding that he doubted any of us would be here had he not encountered those problems.