Sir, - In an article in The Irish Times last autumn, Mr Brendan Howlin TD wrote that "the political system must be geared at all times for the service and convenience of the people and not the other way around".
Such fine sentiments from a prominent politician are, of course, to be applauded. However, I wonder if they provide much consolation for:
the people who, each day, are crammed like sardines into overcrowded trains, wait interminably, often in bad weather, for buses or taxis, or sit in cars trying to make their way through cities and towns where the streets are choked with traffic;
the unfortunate women whose lives have been blighted as a result of the BTSB scandal;
the people whose names are on hospital waiting lists, sometimes for years on end;
the hapless patients in some of our psychiatric hospitals, notably St Ita's, Portrane, where conditions are said to atrocious;
handicapped people for whom life is a constant battle because of the failure to provide them with access to normal facilities;
the children who have to attend sub-standard primary schools or the teachers who have to contend with the highest pupil/ teacher ration in Europe;
the unfortunate asylum-seekers queueing in the rain outside the Department of Justice.
Above all, I wonder if Mr Howlin's fine words will provide much consolation for the thousands of people who live in deprived areas and who struggle on a daily basis to make some kind of life for themselves. Somehow I don't think so, especially if they contrast their situation with that of the politicians as they enjoy the recently upgraded facilities of the Dail bar or look forward to the enhanced environment which will result from the general refurbishment of Leinster House shortly to be undertaken at a cost of £25 million. - Yours, etc.,
Silchester Park, Glenageary, Co Dublin.