Varadkar says Cork library protesters 'want to be arrested'

'There are people on the extreme right, and on the extreme left, who want to be arrested, who want to be able to accuse the gardaí of being heavy-handed and engaging in brutality,' Taoiseach said

The protest outside the city library on Grand Parade last Saturday. Picture: Larry Cummins

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has condemned the protests which have repeatedly forced the closure of Cork City Library saying: "It's not long after you start burning books, that sometimes people start burning other people."

The library on Grand Parade was forced to close last Saturday after a banner was erected across its doors during a heated protest which is believed to have included a number of far-right activists who came into the city specifically for the event.