The other questions - Economy is not the only pressing issue

IT is inevitable that the economy is the dominant issue in the election campaign — how could it be otherwise?

Nevertheless the 30th Dáil slipped into the past without addressing questions that will have to be resolved. Even if you put taxation and service cuts to one side for a moment — oh that we could — there are a good number of issues on the public radar for years that have avoided resolution through convenience or indifference.

Just yesterday the United Nations reported that world food prices hit a record high in January and that extraordinary weather events could put yet more pressure on food prices, an issue that has contributed to violent protests across the Middle East.