Nama committee adviser Frank Cushnahan worked from office in Tughans' Belfast building

One of Nama's Northern Ireland Advisory Committee members worked from an office in Tughans' building in Belfast.

The committee advised the Nama board on strategy for its NI assets.

Tughans is the solicitors firm at the centre of allegations made in the Irish parliament over its role in the sale of Nama's NI property loan portfolio.

It has confirmed one of the committee's external members, Frank Cushnahan, had an office at its building, Marlborough House.

Tughans indirectly acted for the buyers of Nama's Northern Ireland portfolio.

The firm said: "In Frank Cushnahan's capacity as a local businessman, he was a referrer of work to the practice and other NI law firms.

"He had a self-contained office in the same building occupied by Tughans, as did other entities over the years."

Mr Cushnahan was one of two external members nominated to the National Asset Management Agency (Nama) NI advisory committee by the then Finance Minister Sammy Wilson.

Instructed

The other was Brian Rowntree, who was then the Housing Executive chairman.

He told the BBC: "It would be fair to say that the information that I witnessed and I heard in Nama, offered commercial opportunity and I would have thought that Nama wanted to protect that data, they wanted to make sure that data was not in any way exploited by any individual in Nama or associated with Nama."

Frank Cushnahan served on the Nama NI advisory committee from 2010 until 2013.

He is a leading corporate figure, whose roles have included serving as chairman of the Belfast Harbour Commissioners and the Red Sky maintenance firm.

Tughans indirectly acted for the buyers of Nama's Northern Ireland portfolio.

Cerberus, who bought the portfolio, said they were represented by the US firm Brown Rudnick, who in turn instructed Tughans.