Irish Cancer Society’s work should be done by Department of Health

I cannot be the only reader who did not know whether to laugh or cry or bang my fists in rage at your page 3 headline ( Irish Examiner, January 16) in which Minister Leo Varadkar asked people to continue to support another charity that paying outrageous salaries.

Firstly it is bad enough that cancer is so widespread — largely because of the negligence of our governmental system (air pollution, permitted chemicals in food and water, lack of proper health education etc.).

Secondly, it is an appalling indictment of our political system a charity should even be necessary in such an important area when our governmental system already extract about ¤40 billion every year from taxpayers to pay for a dysfunctional health system.

Thirdly, people give voluntarily to the hundreds of charities here in Ireland in the expectation their money will be used for the stated cause, not given to grossly overpaid staff.

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of people who could run such a charity in their spare time. It happens in almost every town and village. ¤130,000 is a huge insult, a slap in the face, to all donors.

Let us all write to the Minister for Illness and ask him to get the work done out of the ¤40 billion spent on health each year , just as we all expect when we elect a government.

Richard Barton

Tinahely

Co Wicklow