Madam, - Whether or not one agreed with Mr Dempsey's determination to reintroduce college fees, it was good for our democracy to see a Minister for Education with the courage of his convictions.
It is a profound embarrassment to us all to acknowledge the continued neglect and educational deprivation of children in our inner cities. No one knows better than An Taoiseach of the disadvantages experienced by parents and children in north inner-city Dublin, and it will be a great credit to his Government if a serious effort is mounted to deal with these seemingly intractable educational problems.
We have to reach out beyond the howls of protest of vested interest groups to those who are incapable of effective protest on their own behalf. Someone, somewhere, must surely have credible (that is, effective and practical) solutions to these problems. - Yours, etc.,
GERALD MORGAN, FTCD,
Trinity College,
Dublin 2.
Madam, - I am writing to you from a private third-level institution in reference to Kevin Myers's Irishman's Diary of May 29th.
With the debate regarding the reintroduction of third level fees, it is refreshing to hear a journalist with a different side to the argument who is willing to point out the most obvious of matters: "governments should no more decide what fees they charge than they do what fees Glenstal or Clongowes charge".
Let me ask your readers one question. Is it right that the cost of a third-level place funded by the Department of Education is €7,500 per student, whereas the private sector can educate a student for €4,000 a year? - Yours, etc.,
RONAN FENELON,
Griffith College Dublin,
South Circular Road,
Dublin 8.
Madam: Does the sidelining of the issue of third-level fees mean that we will no longer have to endure the daily talk about "free fees"? Perhaps "free fees" could now be consigned to the dustbin of oxymorons to join other "frees" such as free rent, free purchase, free election, free gift, free labour, free prisoner, free market, etc. etc. - Yours, etc.,
J. SLEVIN,
Waterloo Road,
Dublin 4.