HOW dare Alan Shatter chide us for criticising the judiciary.

WE believe that Ireland needs a democratic and effective second chamber.

IN reading Mr Dave Reilly’s comment regarding Dr Michael Murphy’s invitation (March 26) to have President Barack Obama lecture at UCC, I agree that the offer should be withdrawn.

GRAVEDIGGERS needing certificates after centuries of noble service — we’ve heard it all now.

THE census has become nothing other than a highly invasive and unwarranted probe into people’s lives with a high nuisance factor.

BY abolishing the Seanad, more power and decision-making will be foisted into fewer hands.

WHILE accepting that any citizen has a right to defend his, or herself against condemnation by a state official which one regards as outlandishly unjust, there is nonetheless an obligation on whomever feels ill-done by an investigative process to abide by a certain protocol and respect the official, and the office held by that individual.

ALTHOUGH Bulgaria has signed the Hague Convention for the Protection of Children in Intercountry Adoption (Irish Examiner, March 25)) and therefore Irish couples are within their rights under Irish law to seek adoptions from there, we fear that in the effort to find “available” children to adopt, that the principles of Hague are often forgotten about.

MINISTERS must bear collective cabinet responsibility and duty of government, so why are Enda Kenny, Michael Noonan, Richard Burton and Brendan Howlin not offering their resignation?

WELL done to the voters of Tipperary North, who have managed to elect themselves a political eunuch as their representative.