Hungover or not the interview was bad on so many levels

THE question of whether or not Taoiseach Brian Cowen was hungover during his interview with Morning Ireland was not as serious as his failure to grasp the significance and seriousness of such outings.

There were many aspects of his performance that failed to come up to the mark and, however his handlers attempt to spin it, there are some issues which are impossible to avoid.

An ignorance of the purpose of the interview: As Taoiseach, Mr Cowen was charged with explaining why the Government needed to take another €3 billion out of the economy next year. That was the dominant item on the news agenda. That was the subject of the interview.