Seán Quinn a great businessman and a national asset

MATT Cooper’ column on Seán Quinn (January 15) was scurrilous, disgusting, insulting and not properly researched.

Mr Quinn is Ireland’s greatest entrepreneur. From humble beginnings in Teemore, Co Fermanagh, where he had a sandpit and one truck, he developed an enormous building supplies business delivering materials all over the country. Soon he had a very large fleet of trucks and insurance on these was expensive. There was a lot of hassle trying to deal with claims, so he set up his own insurance company, which is a great success employing hundreds of lucky people. He built a massive hotel in Ballyconnell, Co Cavan, with a championship golf course attached. This again gives great employment and brings many visitors to the area.

On a mountain north of Ballyconnell he has many wind turbines producing a massive amount of green energy and again creating great employment. When BUPA decided to pull out of Ireland, leaving hundreds of workers in Fermoy heading for the dole, Mr Quinn stepped in and saved their jobs. He built a glass factory in Ballyconnell, which is also a big success and employs hundreds of grateful people.

To suggest his actions in attempting to purchase a 25% stake in Anglo Irish Bank was a major contributor to the disaster at that bank is stupid.

The collapse at Anglo, and all banks, was caused by global factors and the bad lending practices at these banks.

Nearly all the big borrowers were in the building/development area, and when the building bubble burst their source of income to service their loans was gone. However, Mr Quinn has many sources of income which ensure he is well able to pay his way. It seems to be a case of sour grapes on the part of Matt Cooper when he derides the payments made by the Quinn Group to Seán Quinn’s children in 2008. Why shouldn’t they receive these payments? They are all adults and hopefully they will do something like their dad and create further employment for the Irish people. Seán Quinn employs about 6,000 people who pay their income tax to the state every week. He is not living in Switzerland or some other “tax shelter”. No, he is living in a house on the side of the road in Ballyconnell with his wife and family and paying all his due taxes to the state. When the VAT from all his companies, his own taxes and the income tax from 6,000 people are all added up, Mr Cooper would be surprised to learn what a great asset Seán Quinn is to our country.

Mattie O’Dowd

Dunmanway Road

Bandon

Co Cork