A chara, – I believe Dr Edward Walsh’s proposal for a national Government (Opinion, October 8th) deserves very serious consideration by all Irish people and all political parties.
I have been somewhat dismayed over the past two years by the playacting and antics of many of our politicians across the floor of Dáil Éireann.
For some reason they think they are in a game and behave like a bunch of spoiled kids while Ireland burns. However, I was heartened recently to see a beacon of hope coming from the Labour Party when Ruairí Quinn recognised the importance of the national interest and paired with An Tánaiste, Mary Coughlan to enable her to honour a key commitment in the United States on behalf of the Irish people.
Let’s hope that Dr Walsh’s analysis and proposals will be a wake-up call for some real action by our political parties in the interests of the Irish people. – Yours, etc,
A Chara, – With reference to your headline ("Greens seek all-party forum on 'grave' crisis in economy", Front page, October 8th), the Greens should take time out to have a quick look at our Constitution. Such a forum already exists – it's called Dáil Éireann! – Is mise,
Madam, – Dr Edward Walsh suggests that we form a unity government to tackle this crisis like the British political parties during second World War (Opinion, October 8th).
The problem with this comparison is that the Labour and Conservative parties united to fight fascism not enforce it through draconian public service cuts and the continuation of a regressive tax system that predominantly favours the well off.
And as for his suggestion of appointing unelected big business leaders to the governing cabinet, that one is straight out of the fascist handbook. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Instead of politicians talking around the table, why not choose a number of senior, proven businessmen from both Irish and multinational businesses to act as an advisory group to the Government on the difficult choices it has to make? – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Dr Edward Walsh is correct to call for a national government. This is no time for a general election. Opposition parties should take this opportunity to show the electorate the solutions it can offer. It should plan for the upcoming four-year budget before talks commence. Unlike the Tallaght strategy, when Fine Gael demanded nothing in return for its support, the Opposition should demand that its every input be acknowledged in public. At the next general election, the electorate will face clear choices. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – In calling for a national consensus on budgetary measures over four years, John Gormley and those who support this (Editorial, October 9th) first have to explain why we should believe the basis on which such a strategy is being drawn up. What has changed since your Economics Correspondent Dan O’Brien drew our attention to the weakness of the Department of Finance (“Looking back on a unique absence of foresight” Opinion, June 28th, 2010). He stated, “budgetary frameworks and procedures matter . . . In a pre-crisis report . . . the European Commission came up with a detailed methodology to measure member countries’ proximity to accepted best practice . . . the result: Ireland’s overall arrangements were found to be the most deficient of the 19 countries which participated in the study. Second from bottom came Greece . . . in 2007. The study turned out to have considerable predictive power. In 2009, Ireland had the largest budget deficit among the EU 27 and Greece the second largest . . . Most damningly, the report found a total lack of foresight capacity . . . Ireland not only came last among the 19 in this sub-section, uniquely, it was found not to have a single safeguard in place.” Please note that the Minister for Finance has commissioned a review of the Department of Finance, which is underway. – Is mise,
Madam, – I believe it was Samuel Johnson who declared that "patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel". Looking at the current calls for a so-called "national government", it would appear that little has changed in the intervening 200 years. – Yours, etc,
Madam,– The Greens are seeking an all-party forum due to the “grave” crisis in the economy? Or, perhaps, it is due to a “one foot in the grave” crisis for the Greens? – Yours, etc,