Better to neutralise ‘deep state’ power than simply to balance it

Eddie Hobbs’ exposé of the ‘deep state’ (March 18) missed the point in three significant ways.

Firstly, his definition of the deep state is too broad to be useful or true — it includes, he says, “unelected government bureaucrats, bank executives, public trade union brass, top accountancy firms, multinational corporations, Ibec, agencies like RTÉ, regulators and quangos”.

But for a deep state to function, the circle needs to be much tighter than that, yet would also include politicians, judges, and senior soldiers and policemen/women (none of whom Hobbs thinks to include).