Holiday parents from Derry deny being drunk

The Co Derry couple whose children were temporarily taken into care in Portugal after allegations that they were drunk have denied that they consumed excess alcohol.

The couple and their children - aged one, two and six - were on holidays when the children were taken into care after the parents allegedly passed out drunk on Friday afternoon.

In a statement issued this afternoon, the McGuckins said that on Friday evening they went to a restaurant for a meal, but did not consume excess alcohol.

They said they returned to their hotel before 10pm, where Antoinette became violently ill.

It was arranged that hotel management would care for the children, and the couple went a nearby Health Centre.

In the early hours of the morning the couple said they returned to the hotel and discovered the children had been taken into care.

In their statement, the couple said they were "deeply saddened and hurt" by what had happened, and would "never ever place their children in any kind of danger".