Madam, – You report that Colm McCarthy has been appointed chairman of a new review group which is to consider the disposal of State assets (Front page, July 23rd). The only reason private sector investors will purchase State assets is to make a profit. If they can foresee a profit in such purchases, why can’t the State retain the assets and run the enterprises in such a manner as to earn those profits for the benefit of the citizens?
Have we learned nothing from the disposal of the Irish Sugar Company and Telecom Éireann, where multimillionaires were created while sugar production ceased and the public was saddled with one of the worst and most expensive telecommunication systems in the developed world? Is this another quick-fix solution, or is it just further evidence of an attitude that emerged in recent years which can be summarised in the phrase “public sector bad, private sector good”? We shouldn’t forget that it was the private sector bankers, builders and developers who brought us to the sorry state in which we now find ourselves.
– Yours, etc,