Sir, – I share Adam Harris’s horror at the appalling remarks made by US president Donald Trump this week in relation to autism and I commend him for calling them out (“Head of Irish autism charity ‘horrified’ by Trump’s paracetamol comments,” September 23rd).
The dehumanising dismissal of autistic people’s lives and worth was chilling. I am a 51-year-old Irish woman with autism. It affects every aspect of how I experience the world and how I process sights, sounds, textures, information, social expectations and rules.
I am fortunate to have been able to get an outstanding education in Ireland, to qualify and practise as a lawyer in two jurisdictions, to be elected to public office, and to lecture in my field in Ireland and abroad.
If I had done none of these things – if I had struggled to speak, to learn, to live independently – my life and contribution would still have been precious, unique and worthy of understanding and support.
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I appeal to your readers to educate themselves about autism and to think about how they can support – and stand up for – the many children and adults living with autism in Irish society. – Yours, etc,
Dr DEIRDRE Ní FHLOINN,
Goatstown,
Dublin 14.
Sir, – I read with great concern your recent article “Head of Irish autism charity ‘horrified’ by Trump’s paracetamol comments” (September 23rd).
Adam Harris is right to be horrified, and I applaud his exceptional work in advocating for young people who are neurodiverse.
His voice is vital in a society that too often dismisses or misunderstands the experiences of autistic people.
As an autism-friendly school, we take pride in recognising the giftedness and unique perspectives of our neurodivergent students.
Our recent design and launch of a sensory uniform have exemplified this commitment. It was created to address the needs of students with sensory needs and was designed by one of our talented students.
Launched as a model of good practice by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE), it aims to ensure comfort, dignity, and equal access to a school uniform, something every student has a right to. This innovation not only supports learning but also models inclusivity in action.
Listening to student voices and breaking down barriers helps us to create a landscape of universal design for learning. Neurodiverse students challenge us to think differently, to remove obstacles, and to embrace solutions that benefit everyone.
Indeed, as we all grow older, each of us will face challenges in accessing the world; the insights of neurodivergent young people prepare us for that reality.
Our younger generation, who embrace and celebrate their unique giftedness, have much to teach us. It is up to us to be open, receptive, and willing to learn from them. – Yours, etc,
Dr EDEL GREENE,
Principal,
St Mary’s Secondary School,
Baldoyle,
Dublin.
Sir, – As a mother of two wonderful autistic children, I was outraged by the rhetoric from the US last night. Discussing a “cause” of being autistic is as senseless as discussing a “cause” of being human. Being is not a disease.
What truly needs curing is the practice of portraying difference as a problem, of devaluing existence, and of making people unsafe in their own society.
Ireland’s strength lies in rejecting this toxic narrative. We grow stronger when we listen to autistic voices and value difference. I trust we will continue to punch above our weight as we stand with the autistic community in solidarity. – Yours, etc,
LUCINDA MURRIHY,
Dundrum,
Dublin 16.
O’Callaghan and Ipas centres
Sir, – Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan says it is “intolerable” that families are refusing to uproot their lives and move from International Protection Accommodation Service (Ipas) centres (Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, September 23rd).
What is truly intolerable is a system that shows no understanding of the reality these families face. We are in the middle of a housing crisis where families cannot secure homes.
To call it “abuse” when parents fight to keep their children in the schools, friendships, and communities that give them a shred of stability is to wilfully ignore that context.
Any parent knows the lengths they would go to in order to protect their child’s security. To accuse asylum- seeking families of abusing the system for wanting the same is unjust.
You cannot abuse a system that does not work in the first place. The Government should not be shaming families for clinging to what little stability they have built; it should instead be urgently working to fix a housing crises that hurts us all. – Yours, etc,
CILLIAN QUINN,
Policy and programmes coordinator,
ActionAid Ireland,
Merrion Square,
Dublin 2.
Trump and UN address
Sir, – They say that every problem is an opportunity in disguise. Donald Trump’s embarrassing lengthy rant at the United Nations, where he blamed everyone else, except himself, for the morass that the world is in today.
His disparaging of the UN did, however, have some truth in it. The UN is not functioning as it should, mainly because it is stymied by United States and Russian vetoes every time it tries to intervene to settle world disputes, Gaza being a prime example.
Perhaps if this veto was scrapped and replaced by a majority vote the UN could function as it was originally intended. We need a united front worldwide to make it happen. Ireland can take the lead in this as it has done in the Palestine issue. This could be the opportunity to make real change. – Yours, etc,
BOBBY CARTY,
Templeogue,
Dublin 6W.
Sir, – The old adage goes that it is better to keep your mouth shut and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.
Donald Trump removed all doubt long ago, but Tuesday’s “address” to the United Nations was a new low and an embarrassment to the country he represents. – Yours, etc,
JOHN KELLY,
Bennekerry,
Carlow
Sir, – What a relief, climate change is a great big hoax. Thank you, president Donald Trump. I am confident you have a very good explanation for why we have extreme weather conditions with massive floods and fires. I am also confident that you will tell the hundreds of thousands of people in North Africa why the Sahara Desert is moving south, making it impossible for them to grow their crops and feed their families. Why they are forced to move from their homes in search of food? Why people in Europe and the Us are dealing with extremes in climate with homes and livelihoods destroyed by floods and fires.
I look forward to Trump’s explanation for these and many more events across the world. I am confident he has a perfectly reasonable explanation. – Yours, etc,
PAULA MOLLOY,
Baldoyle,
Dublin 13.
EU institutions and Israel
Sir, – I am writing on behalf of 107 former officials of the European institutions. Together we have signed a petition to the presidents of the European Commission, Parliament and Council.
It reads: We, the undersigned, being former officials of the European institutions and imbued with the values which we honoured in our work for the European Union, wish to register our full support for the letters on Gaza issued by the group of 380 former European ambassadors and senior EU staff on August 26th and September 10th.
Like them we call for urgent and decisive action – not just words – from the European institutions to put pressure on Israel to end its brutal war, resume vital humanitarian assistance and support human rights. We also urge them to uphold international law and to implement EU measures against Israel’s unlawful actions.
In addition, we call on all EU member states to recognise the state of Palestine. – Yours, etc,
COLM LARKIN,
(former director of Commission Representation)
Foxrock,
Dublin.
Sir, – Amid all this posturing by Simon Harris and Micheál Martin over Hamas, they should remember that Michael Collins, Nelson Mandela and Martin McGuinness were all condemned as terrorists in their time, yet all three played essential parts in peace processes and all three served in government. – Yours, etc,
DONAGH McINERNEY,
Celbridge,
Co Kildare.
Posturing and the presidency
Sir, – Maria Steen received the support of 18 Oireachtas members in her bid to be included on the ballot for the presidential election. Falling just two signatures short, it was striking that no further endorsements were forthcoming, including from several prominent Independent Senators.
Last autumn, just before the deadline, when I was handing in my nomination papers for the NUI Senate elections, a fellow candidate was found to lack an additional signature to complete her nomination and asked me (her direct competitor) to add my name to the list.
I did so without hesitation. In a democracy, it is the electorate who must decide; to obstruct a candidate’s appearance on the ballot is to undermine that principle. – Yours, etc,
MICHAEL O’DOHERTY,
Killiney,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – I hope we never hear from city or county councils again looking for more power when almost all of them failed to use the powers we gave them. – Yours, etc,
DAVID CURRAN,
Galway.
Sir, – I agree with Paul O’Beirne’s Letter (September 23rd) regarding the blocking, undemocratic mechanism employed by Fine Gael and (in a more covert way) by Fianna Fáil to ensure no Independents got on the ballot for the presidential election.
It’s a bit rich to hear the Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris lecturing other countries on the sacred nature of the “democratic process”.
Kettle calling the pot black? – Yours, etc,
GILL McCARTHY,
Co Wicklow.
Institutional investors
Sir, –Your editorial (September 24th) suggests that Government policy is “throwing money and tax incentives at institutional investors” while neglecting affordability.
With respect, this framing is misleading to say the least. Institutional investors are not singled out for special treatment. A range of supports, whether subventions, or viability measures are available to a wide spectrum of housing actors, from approved housing bodies to private developers.
To characterise incentives as directed uniquely at institutional investors is therefore simply incorrect.
The reality is that Ireland faces a structural supply deficit that requires every available delivery channel.
Institutional capital is one among several, and its role has been positive and proven: providing scale, patient finance and the ability to deliver at volume.
Far from being favoured, institutions are subject to the same regulatory, planning and viability challenges as any other participant in the sector.
The central issue should be how policy levers are applied fairly across all delivery partners, with a focus on outcomes, namely, more homes at sustainable cost.
Negatively characterising much- needed institutional investment in this way risks distracting from the urgent need to expand supply through every credible route. – Yours, etc,
PAT FARRELL,
Chief Executive,
Irish Institutional Property,
Dublin 2.
Good manners
Sir, – Justine McCarthy’s column has elicited varying responses from your letter writers, most of them reflecting personal experiences on public transport. Sometimes, I take action, just a few quiet words and always with a positive outcome.
I’ve reminded individuals to use headphones or earbuds, I’ve asked others to tone down a phone conversation, I asked a young man on the Luas to take his feet off the seat. And why not?
Friends have warned me that I am asking for trouble. So far, none and no unpleasantness either. I prefer to respond to a niggle in my own way than seethe for the duration of the journey.
Just confront your inner Victor or Victoria Meldrew and see how it goes. – Yours, etc,
NUALA GALLAGHER,
Dublin 15.
Home births and male consultants
Sir, – Caroline Canning (September 24th), writing on the subject of home birth, opines that “the people who benefit most from the over-medicalisation around this are the ( largely male) consultants in the field”.
While I have no wish to pass judgment on the safety or otherwise of home births, it is of note that the Medical Council’s Medical Workforce Intelligence Report 2024 indicates that obstetrics and gynaecology is in fact the Irish medical speciality with the second highest proportion of female doctors, at 70.8 per cent.
This figure relates to the total workforce including both non-consultant hospital doctors as well as consultants, and so the proportion among consultants may be somewhat lower, but the future of the speciality is evidently not “largely male”. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN HAYES,
Kinsale,
Co Cork.
Pride of place
Sir, – If people want to show pride in our country, instead of putting up a flag why not pick up litter? – Yours, etc,
JOHN DOYLE,
Enniskeane,
Co Cork.
In praise of Ballinrobe
Sir, – Miriam Lord writes that “one observer summed up the freshly forged alliance between the defenders of rural Ireland and the Ballsbridge-born Blackrock resident, Maria Steen” as “Royal Ascot meets Ballinrobe Races” ( September 24th).
I protest at the mention of Ballinrobe and Royal Ascot in the same breath. Based on happy evenings spent there as a child, I know that Ballinrobe offers genuine horse racing: real fences, real turf, real people.
Royal Ascot is Downton Abbey with a dash of The Kardashians: all hat, no heart. Ballinrobe, by contrast, is Normal People with a dash of The Field: all soul, no swagger.
Attendances at Ballinrobe increased in 2025.
I suggest the Ascot set leave their chandelier headpieces at home and make their way west, where form matters more than fashion and racing matters more than literally anything else. – Yours, etc,
BRENDAN KELLY,
Inchicore,
Dublin 8.
