Northern Irish first minister Peter Robinson calls BBC allegations smear and innuendo

The first minister of Northern Ireland, Peter Robinson, has dismissed BBC allegations that he purchased a valuable strip of land close to his garden for £5 and did not pay tax on it as a "smear" by "innuendo". The Democratic Unionist party (DUP) issued a statement on his behalf this evening as the BBC broadcast claims about the MP's dealings with property developers in east Belfast over the sale of part of his garden for a housing scheme. The BBC Newsline programme suggested that although the narrow strip of land – which controlled access to the housing site – was bought and sold for a nominal £5, it was worth far more. The programme maintained that a "professional valuation carried out for the BBC put the strip's value at upwards of £75,000 when the Robinsons obtained it, and at least £220,000 when they sold it". Although no profit had been made, Customs and Revenue could use market values on the sale instead of the £5 for which it was bought it and sold, the report added. "This potentially exposes the Robinsons to a tax bill of thousands of pounds." The BBC said that the deal had enabled the Robinsons to sell part of their garden for a sum of nearly £460,000. But the DUP statement denied that any tax liability had been incurred. "It is difficult to escape the conclusion that this is yet another example of the ongoing BBC smear campaign against DUP leader Peter Robinson," the party said in response to the programme. "In January [the BBC] made groundless allegations against him in the Spotlight programme and now they seek to smear him further by innuendo and inference. In fact, this is not even a new story. "Mr Robinson sold his land at the market value, as admitted by the BBC. There are no tax implications. The sliver of land was bought for £5 and sold for £5, a fact that has never been hidden, and Mr Robinson derived no financial benefit whatsoever from the transaction. There were a number of other access possibilities and the sliver of land was not essential for access." The DUP accused the BBC of delaying the story until the start of the election campaign when it would most damage the party. "Mr Robinson has handed these issues over to his legal team to be dealt with," it added. Early in January the East Belfast MP stepped down temporarily from the office of first minister to clear his name over the financial scandal surrounding his wife, Iris. He resumed his position in February. During the political crisis, it emerged that his wife, then also a DUP MP, had had an affair with a teenager and helped secure a £50,000 loan for him from property developers. She has since resigned her Westminster seat. The latest allegations come as the Northern Ireland parties prepare to fight an election that is likely to see fierce and personalised attacks on the DUP from unionists opposed to the power-sharing deal with Sinn Féin. Other parties in the Northern Ireland assembly, grateful that Robinson ushered through the difficult deal to devolve justice and policing powers to the province, are likely to give him political space to reply to the latest BBC claims. The BBC defended its journalism in a further statement last night, declaring that the "investigation has been carried out in the public interest and is a responsible and balanced piece of journalism ... The Robinsons were made aware of the allegations on several occasions and were given appropriate rights of reply."