Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is true that Quinn Industrial Holdings has been in ongoing contact with An Garda Síochána and the PSNI in the context of threats that have been made, violent intimidation and acts that have happened. This is not the first instance but it is by far the most serious.

Both the PSNI and An Garda Síochána will attach the highest priority to this case. There is an obligation on the communities living in the area. Many people know who carried out these acts and who is behind the brutality, intimidation and total lawlessness of what happened. Those people need to come forward and help the PSNI and An Garda Síochána in the investigations they will conduct and I strongly encourage them to do that. This is not what people living in Border counties want or will accept and they need to work with the PSNI and An Garda Síochána to stamp it out and respond to an event that, quite frankly, could have resulted in a man's death. It was a brutal assault that is going to have a considerable impact on both Mr. Lunney and his family. It needs a quick response from the policing and judicial sectors.

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