SEÁN Quinn has backed the bid of Sean Gallagher, a businessman and former presidency candidate for the President of Ireland, to purchase the Slieve Russell Hotel, it can be revealed.

The story was first reported in The Anglo Celt newspaper yesterday [Wednesday, July 3].

It is understood that Mr. Quinn helped secure the support of a number of potential investors to support the bid of Mr. Gallagher, who is from Co. Monaghan but grew up in Co. Cavan.

In a statement to the newspaper, which reports that the local bid has been rejected, Mr. Quinn said: “It is strange that the local bid is the only one that has been thrown out, and didn’t get a second opportunity to bid, and I would ask for that decision to be reversed, as I have no doubt but that customers would have returned in their droves if the hotel was locally owned and would become very successful very quickly.

“I would like to thank Sean [Gallagher] and all those who helped financially or in any other way, and a particular word of thanks to the tens of thousands who feel that the hotel should have gone back to where it belongs.”

Previously, Mr. Gallagher had stated that he “would not be interested in acquiring the hotel without the blessing of Seán Quinn, the Quinn family and the local community”.

A number of high-profile individuals have been linked to the sale of the Slieve Russell Hotel, including MMA fighter and businessman, Conor McGregor.

The iconic property located in Ballyconnell, Co. Cavan, near the Fermanagh Border, has entered the property market with an asking price of €35 million (€30.1m) and was once the jewel in the crown of the Quinn business empire.

The Slieve Russell has been under the control of the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC) since 2011.

The sale is being conducted by CBRE on behalf IBRC liquidators.

The 224-bedroom hotel includes a spa and leisure centre, set on 300 acres, and comprises an 18-hole championship golf course and a nine-hole academy course.

The hotel is hugely popular in the Border region with many people travelling from Fermanagh to avail of its services over the years.

Mr. Quinn returned to the hotel last year to officially launch his best-selling book, ‘In My Own Words’, in an event attended by Mr. Gallagher.

The Impartial Reporter contacted Mr. Quinn for comment, but he had not responded by the time of going to print.