Madam, - Commenting on Tom Garvin's book Preventing the Future: Why was Ireland Poor for So Long, Desmond Fennell (December 27th) asks why - in spite of the present level of wealth creation - there seems to be a persisting comparative weakness of Irish enterprise. The question merits a response.
It would be a brave man or woman who would commit the whole of their commercial assets to a small offshore island, and simultaneously to the care of future Irish governments. Government rhetoric about efficiency and economic rationality sounds great, but that rhetoric coexists with staggering waste and madcap schemes such as decentralisation, the once-again revival of Irish, and the purchase of an electronic voting system for the national parliament without even getting possession of the programme's source code. These are just a few examples, but they seem so irrational, and they involve the disbursement of so much money to selected individuals, that the mind is left thrashing around seeking an explanation of their purpose.
So no deep philosophical or psychological analysis is needed to understand why successful Irish entrepreneurs should wish to locate their next investment abroad. Such decisions are based on sound economic and political considerations, namely the small size of the home base, and the actions of governments which very often neglect the economic impact of their own policies. - Yours, etc.,
DONAL FLYNN,
Sandycove,
Co Dublin.