Madam, - Your Editorial "Poor scrutiny and the Finance Bill" (March 13th) might have been more persuasive if it had shown any sign of detailed scrutiny of its passage through the Dáil this year.
Neither The Irish Timesnor indeed any other paper devoted a single line to the detailed but lively and interesting two-day committee stage debate.
Debate was in no way curtailed on any of the points that members wished to major on, and the third day provided for the committee stage was not in fact needed.
Only the report stage, to which you did devote coverage, was limited, but it still allowed for a lively and heated debate on the only significant new element in the Bill introduced at that stage, the Government amendment to provide tax relief for the building of hospice facilities, which raised similar issues and emotions to those associated with hospital co-location.
The main focus of media coverage of the Oireachtas is politics rather than policy. Deputies on all sides of the House feel that media interest and scrutiny and, where appropriate, expertise in the matter under discussion, need improving, though The Irish Timesmakes a lot more effort than most, apart from RTÉ which has a statutory duty. - Yours, etc,
Dr MARTIN MANSERGH TD, Vice-Chair, Select Committee on Finance and the Public Service, Dáil Éireann, Dubin 2.