Election letter: We could have done with a better commentary in election campaign

Much of the commentary on this election campaign has been disappointing. It is especially so since it is taking place in a country that is hopefully coming out of its worst nightmare since independence. There seemed to have been two main messages dominating the commentary.

The first was that Labour should be punished because when in government they did not do what Syriza did in Greece, ie make a calamitous situation worse. The second message is that the election campaign was boring.

The seriousness of this country’s position in 2010 is highlighted by the fact that the government spending situation was three times worse than Greece’s was that year. Now we are much better than Greece. That recovery should not be taken for granted and is not boring.

This country’s most powerful citizens in charge of its government and financial institutions tripled government spending and bank lending during the boom. The result was that European taxpayers, including the poorest, had to bail out this country because it went bankrupt.

That was a historical first for this country and is not a boring topic to be ignored in this campaign. Some of the powerful people who supported the boom-time decisions which bankrupt the country are being virtually unchallenged when they are all over the media blaming everyone else. That this is happening is serious criticism of those who are failing to challenge these powerful people and that fact is certainly not a boring story.

A Leavy

Sutton,

Dublin