It’s a bit rich: why austerity for the poor only?

In response to Mr Kevin McCarthy’s letter (Aug 6) about the Greek government implementing austerity measures: We know there must be cuts and taxes to reduce our deficit; we know that governmental and administrative waste (‘advisers,’ junkets, expenses, golden handshakes, inflated salaries and pensions) should be eliminated.

They won’t be.

Fine Gael, in their election manifesto, talked about burning bond-holders. Did they do it? They were also against an introduction of a house tax, because “an annual recurring tax on the family home is unfair”. Did they stand by that statement?

Mr McCarthy is selective in his memory and enthusiastic about implementing austerity measures.

Does he not realise that the present, and future, austerity measures disproportionately hit hardest working-class people on low to middle incomes? Obviously, he doesn’t.

You don’t have to be a so-called “left-winger” to see the injustice that is being done to the ordinary Irish people, who did not cause our difficulties, while those who caused it, and those who allowed it to happen, have sailed away into the sunset with platinum pensions and golden handshakes, without any austerity or redress heaped upon them.

I fail to understand die-hard party supporters in this country, who, no matter what policies their respective parties introduce against the most hard-pressed in society, think it is morally okay to do so.

I think Mr McCarthy should also wake up to some “cold-light-of-day honest reality”, and see what has happened, and is happening, in this country and see who are saddled the hardest as a result.

As Mr McCarthy said: “funny old world”. But I fail to see the joke.

Christy Kelly

Templeglantine

Co Limerick