Madam, - Your report (The Irish Times, July 22nd) that the Taoiseach has intervened to refute a rumour that the SSIA scheme is to be scrapped in light of the present financial crisis, beggars belief.
Is the Taoiseach seriously suggesting that the other essential services, education, health, social services, etc., will suffer further cuts and this "vote buying" travesty is to remain untouched? Has this Government lost all sense of decency?
Even in the heady days of the Celtic Tiger when Mr McCreevy could not spend the monies that flowed in, this scheme was an abomination that shifted taxes from the less well off to the better off. Indeed in any other civilised country such blatant injustice would have sparked heated controversy. It is a source of regret and concern that apart from The Irish Times there has been silence or at best muted comment on the issue.
It is sad that the Labour Party too have been paralysed by the fear that to call for the scrapping of the scheme might cost them votes, as they appear to be repositioning themselves to appeal to the monied elite within our society. - Yours, etc.,
JIM O'SULLIVAN, Rathedmond, Sligo.