Madam, - James Lawless (January 10th) comments on the negative reactions of the public towards politicians. I can understand why he feels that some criticism is undeserved. May I make a few suggestions which could improve matters?
1.People need to believe their elected representatives can bring about real change at local and national level. We have allowed a system to evolve where most power lies within the Cabinet. TDs are often seen as mere "lobby fodder", remote from real decision-making and reluctant to confront their party whips. The quality of political debate is often lamentable. TDs could change this if they really wanted to.
2.There is a widespread belief that political parties tend to serve powerful vested interests first and ordinary citizens second. This has been demonstrated countless times by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.
It makes people cynical about voting because they believe it won't make any difference who they elect. On the few occasions when politicians do take on powerful interest groups, they command respect. We want to see more of this political courage.
3.Respect for councillors and TDs has been damaged by revelations of corruption. Although some measures have been taken to repair this, not nearly enough has been done. Mr Lawless should not be surprised that much of this corruption has been within his own party, Fianna Fáil.
4.If only the councillors of the party that Mr Lawless supports could make good planning decisions by sticking to their own development plans and stop irresponsible rezoning, we would have more respect for local politics. As it is, badly thought-out, "quick-fix" decisions, against good advice, have left many areas with traffic chaos and reduced people's quality of life for years to come.
5.It is clear to me that the old Civil War parties went stale a long time ago. They fail to inspire voters. Much of the energy and fresh thinking is coming from members of younger political parties which are not so hampered by complacency.
We need that new blood if we care to confront the huge challenges that lie ahead, such as proper physical planning, a decent public transport system and the urgent need to promote and develop alternative sources of energy. - Yours, etc,
DAVID HICKIE, Sandymount, Dublin 4.
Madam, - Congratulations on your Editorial "In praise of politicians" (January 6th).
However, I cannot say I entirely agree with your conclusions. The early exchanges in the general election campaign have shown that the political class in Ireland (often spurred on by the media) is more interested in arguing the toss over trivial issues than actually analysing the problems Ireland faces and creating innovative solutions.
Our electoral system encourages parochialism, but politicians should act like true parliamentarians far more often than they do. - Yours, etc,
CONAL CAMPBELL, Trinity College, Dublin 2.
Madam, - Though I would not necessarily agree with his choice of Fianna Fáil as a political party, I wholeheartedly support James Lawless' call for less cynicism and more engagement when it comes to people's participation in politics.
With experience of working in the charity sector, I've often felt that positive political engagement has the power to bring about more good than the giving of alms. With this in mind I would encourage the entire Irish public to engage with the international ethical issues of the day.
Two other letters in the same edition referred to Ireland's current and past shameful exploitation of situations in Iraq. I would urge all Irish people, particularly Mr Lawless's Fianna Fáil, to seek to end Ireland's assistance to the US military action there through the use of Shannon Airport. We are morally obliged to ask ourselves if we are content to support this. In my view it is our current most shameful contribution to international politics.
Your Editorial stated that some people in Ireland, from the comfort of economic prosperity, think that politics no longer matters. I imagine that the sentiment held by most Iraqis would be strikingly different. - Yours, etc,
DENNIS CURRY, Khartoum, Sudan.