Sir, – According to Miriam Lord’s report of the Dáil flower-wearing drama (Home News, March 27th), Sinn Féin deputy Brian Stanley cannot understand how anyone could find his wearing “green white and gold” objectionable.
May I suggest a good reason? Because these are not the national colours. The colours of our national flag are green white and orange, not gold. Orange is there for a reason, gold means nothing.
Persons of a certain political persuasion may not like this fact, but until and unless the Constitution is amended to change the national flag, the colour is orange. What I find amazing is that such a fundamental misrepresentation of the flag can be made in the national parliament and no one, neither the Ceann Comhairle nor any other deputy, contradicted the mistake. Indeed from Deputy Flanagan’s reply (“It isn’t the colour I object to”), it seems he didn’t even notice a mistake had been made. Extraordinary. – Yours, etc,
SHANE MURPHY,
Brighton Terrace,
Cobh,
Co Cork.