Sir, - I wonder when the Progressive Democrats are going to withdraw from government. They were established as the party of rectitude and standards in public life. Do we have to wait until some Fianna Fail Minister or ex-Minister is caught literally with his hand in the till before they will finally withhold their support? The revelations which have come out - and no doubt further ones will emerge - are awful. In any other Western democracy one of these would have been sufficient to bring down the Government, yet it seems that the Progressive Democrats' hunger for power outstrips their integrity.
It seems to me that the present political climate is such that the only way to resolve the matter is to have a general election even if that results in further delays to the tribunals.
My admiration for the way in which these tribunals have been conducted is beyond measure. The chairmen and their teams deserve everybody's thanks. They have certainly done, so far, an extremely good and exhaustive job. Long may this continue so that the cancer in Irish public life can finally be purged. - Yours, etc., Julian Deale,
Monkstown Road, Co Dublin.