A chara, - Moore McDowell, in his Head to Head article of September 1st, says that the emphasis in our current economic circumstances should be on spending cuts, and advises that we should begin with "a bonfire of the quangos".
A quango is a quasi non-governmental organisation to which the Government has devolved certain functions which it deems necessary.
That some quangos might be inefficient cannot be disputed - there are inefficiencies in many organisations - but this is hardly an argument for lighting a match under them all.
Dr McDowell does not specify to which quangos he has in mind, or even what constitutes a quango. Perhaps he does not differentiate between them.
To take one example, the Equality Authority provides crucial services to people who have been discriminated against because of gender, ethnicity or other grounds. Those who have the misfortune to be poor or disadvantaged may depend on these agencies to represent their interests and to argue for policies that will allow them to live their lives in some dignity.
Dr McDowell argues that those of us who would take issue with some of his argument are guilty of economic illiteracy. But some people - who, incidentally, hardly have recourse to the Opinion Analysis pages of The Irish Timesto express their views - might well argue that calling for a broad cut of those agencies that support their rights represents a social and equalitarian illiteracy. - Is mise,
ANN IRWIN,
National Co-ordinator,
Community Workers'
Co-operative,
Tuam Road Centre,
Galway.