Madam, - The expressions of outrage from opposition politicians, media commentators and correspondents to this page about the appointment of Celia Larkin to the interim board of the National Consumer Agency are a little hard to take.
Appointments to public Boards are always made on the basis of "who you know" - the "what you know" element being often an optional extra.
Let the opposition parties pledge that, in the (perhaps unlikely) event of them forming a future government:
(a) all appointments to such boards will be preceded by advertisements seeking expressions of interest from members of the public in being appointed to the board in question, outlining the range of skills required of the board as a whole and the individual members thereof;
(b) all appointments will be made on the basis of such applications and in accordance with the non-discrimination criteria set out in the Employment Equality Act.
In the meantime, let us leave Ms Larkin alone. - Yours, etc,
SÉ D'ALTON, Palmerston Road, Dublin 6.
Madam, - The Fianna Fáil/Progressive Democrat coalition has hit new lows in recent days. First came the indefensible ministerial pay rises, then the appointment of Celia Larkin to the interim board of the National Consumer Agency.
It was truly piteous to see Minister Micheál Martin on RTÉ News describing Miss Larkin as "apolitical". Miss Larkin may well be above reproach, but the possibility of bias is bound to arise in the mind of every citizen by virtue of her former relationship with Mr Ahern. How can the public have confidence in her work if even a suspicion of bias arises?
The unpalatable truth is that Ms Larkin would not have been considered for this appointment if she had not previously been the Taoiseach's girlfriend. In a democracy this is unacceptable.
What, if anything, has Celia Larkin done for the consumers of this country to merit her appointment? Is she more deserving than the Consumers' Association of Ireland, which has not been given a place? - Yours, etc,
MARK COEN, Gort, Co Galway.
Madam, - Is it a case of one law for Caesar's wife and another for Bertie's ex? - Yours, etc,
BRIAN POWER, Mount Prospect Lawns, Clontarf, Dublin 3.