A minister abused - Boorish and unacceptable

The abuse hurled at Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte while he was enjoying a drink after his day’s work in a Dublin pub is utterly unacceptable.

It went far beyond anything that is acceptable in a society that honours a democratic parliament. That those responsible describe themselves as republicans just offends another tradition held dear in this country.

The objective of that attack was to intimidate Mr Rabbitte and it is to his credit that he remained calm in the face of such boorish provocation.