Sir, - Garret FitzGerald (The Irish Times, December 27th) repeated an oft-heard mantra about the distribution of wealth in Ireland, one of his points being that yet more of the wealth created in the country should be redistributed (via taxation) from the wealthy to the less well-off. The basic assertion appears to be that no wealthy person should be permitted to accumulate surpluses while poor people go without. Such a policy, when taken too far, is economically disasterous, because of the consequent overemphasis on consumption at the expense of saving and investment.Traditionally, accumulation of private wealth has been discouraged in Ireland, notably by high personal taxation. One result of this has been a shortage of private capital for investment. The Government has been the major instigator of industrial development. Since the 1970s, the dominant role of the public sector has been challenged only by the foreign investors.Now, as the Government sells off more and more of our assets to non-Irish enterprises (Telecom Eireann, TEAM, Irish Steel, soon ACC, ICC, Aer Lingus and probably ESB), the proportion of the country's economy which is in foreign hands is percariously high. The potentially catastrophic consequences of this have recently been exemplified by Seagate in Clonmel.To retain some degree of local control and responsibility, the encouragement of an indigenous, privately-owned capital base is essential. Policies like those proposed by Dr FitzGerald will contribute nothing to this. - Yours, etc.(Dr) Norman Stewart,Seapark,Malahide,Co Dublin.