Letters: Keep your pasta, the Irish spud always comes first in my heart

Ireland imports over a million tonnes of vegetables every year. Twenty years ago, the figure would have been half that.

Since Brexit, vegetable wholesalers and importers in Ireland have increasingly shifted from the UK to mainland EU as preferred supply routes.

Now the consumer is being warned that inclement weather in Europe, global supply chain issues and high energy prices have caused a shortage of imported vegetables and spiralling prices. It’s time to support homegrown produce to protect the sustainability of vegetable farms and the few remaining greengrocers.

Vegetables are the mainstay of Ireland’s staple diet, as our temperate climate enables growers to deliver a high-quality yield year after year. Freshly grown Irish produce is far healthier than its European alternative and is a natural source of nutrition.

The Irish spud, supported by two or three homegrown vegetables, is always the dependable full-back on my dinner menu. Noodles, rice, spaghetti, pasta and couscous will never play senior football on my plate.

When I was growing up, potatoes were served every day in some form. My mother regularly sent me across the street to Tom’s greengrocer. He was a man whose personality was as effervescent as the fragrance of natural freshness that wafted out his door.

The shop was a colourful montage of homegrown produce including carrots, parsnips, cauliflowers, cabbages, turnips, onions, apples, pears and strawberries. Tom was proud of his potatoes, the early Queens and Roosters and the later Golden Wonders and Kerr’s Pink.

“How are the spuds this year, Tom?” I’d ask. “Balls of flour, Billy boy, balls of flour, the best in Ireland,” was the reply.

Billy Ryle, Spa, Tralee, Co Kerry

Fine Clare people will make room at the inn

Sir — The people of Clare know more than most about the difficulties and hurdles that are part of the immigrant experience.

Two of the most plaintive songs telling of the lonely isolation of people who find themselves of necessity in foreign shores are Spancil Hill and Ralph McTell’s From Clare To Here.

The opening line in McTell’s song evokes the sub-standard living conditions endured by the immigrants: “There’s four who share a room and we work hard for the craic.”

I’m sure many new arrivals to our shores would empathise.

The people in Co Clare today have concerns about housing new arrivals in Magowna House, but they are clearly not ideologically opposed to acceptance, and they want nothing to do with far-right activists, or fascists, who have their own agenda.

There is a perception, however — rightly or wrongly — that the burden of catering for asylum-seekers is not shared equally among the population.

It would help the optics if Colin Murphy’s suggestion — that Baggot Street Hospital or the former Jury’s Hotel in Ballsbridge be requisitioned — was given serious consideration. The burden must be shared and be seen to be shared.

Murphy also makes the point that if applicants were fast-tracked into the workforce, as in Germany and Finland, it would create a different dynamic.

I agree. People who work in the community — especially where there are skills shortages — quickly become part of the furniture of a rural parish. Even if, to quote Kipling in another context, “they come from the ends of the earth”.

Progress has been made in Inch, the blockade lifted. The “valid concerns” that David Quinn writes of will be heard — and for the people who are currently (but not forever) dependent on the kindness of strangers, there will, all going well, be room at the inn.

Jim O’Connell, Ashtown, Dublin 7

​Does church still get special treatment?

Sir — Last December, it was 50 years since 84pc of the people voted to abolish the “special position of the Holy Catholic Apostolic and Roman Church” in our Constitution. The same article still asserts that the State shall not discriminate on the ground of religious status.

So why is it OK to have a garda investigation into abuse in the Defence Forces, but private or special inquiries into criminal behaviour by religious who abused and into school managers who withheld knowledge of this from the gardaí?

In his piece last Sunday, Colum Kenny focused on the voluntary disclosure of abusing religious, without asking why there are no extensive garda investigations into church-controlled institutions.

It is disturbing that the institutions and the education minister’s inquiries may be interfering with witnesses in what ought to be criminal investigations. This would be contempt in a criminal court.

John F Colgan, Leixlip, Co Kildare

​Let’s have amnesty for asylum-seekers

Sir — Ireland had a population of over eight million before the Famine, so it can easily accommodate more than 10 million today. The majority of asylum- seekers are highly skilled people and should be allowed to work immediately. They should also get free accommodation, free travel, free healthcare and free access to legal recourse.

I would also like to commend the present justice minister for deporting very few failed asylum-seekers — and may I suggest he considers an amnesty for all.

The vast majority of people are totally behind this immigration policy. We have a legal and moral obligation to look after everyone who comes here.

Peter Woods, Drogheda, Co Louth

​Where does it say no women need apply?

Sir — Masses are being cut on a Sunday. We are no longer the island of saints and scholars.

Can some theologian tell me where it says that women priests are not allowed in the Catholic Church? We have women vicars in other Christian churches, but a sea of men in the Catholic Church.

We have women’s liturgy groups taking over from time to time on the altar when the priests go to meetings or retreats. We have female eucharistic ministers.

If the church is to continue, there has to be a huge change.

It is the love of God that has to capture the young and bring them back to prayer. Why is it that men can only preach this? Who gave them that right? I give the Catholic Church 20 years more, the way things are now.

Also, why can’t priests marry? But that’s another story.

Terry Healy Riordan, Kill, Co Kildare

​Sinn Féin’s distorted numbers in the North

Sir — Regarding the Northern Ireland council election results, the overall unionist bloc (even minus some independent unionists) got 54,827 more votes than Sinn Féin.

They got 285,620, which is 38.31pc of the overall votes cast, while Sinn Féin got 230,793 (30.96pc). The unionists also got 186 seats, or 42 more than SF, who got 144. The unionist seat total is more than a quarter larger than the republican one.

The media gleefully concentrated on Sinn Féin winning most seats, but ignored the fact the unionist bloc is far bigger.

Sinn Féin no more won in the North than they did in the Republic in February 2020, when they got 37 of 160 Dáil seats (23.1pc).

Are those who now highlight the latest Sinn Féin result distorting the big picture?

Tom Carew, Ranelagh, Dublin 6

​Degradation was not wrought by the Irish

Sir — In his article of May 21, Gene Kerrigan used a quote from James Connolly to tell us about “the shame and degradation wrought upon the people of Ireland” by Irishmen.

It is a bit of an understatement to say that our colonial masters in London spent eight centuries exploiting this country.

They tore up treaties, stole the land and planted it with their own, imposed penal laws that deprived the Irish of their basic rights, starved millions to death or exported them on coffin ships — at the same time exporting food. They refused to implement an act giving self-rule to the whole island and instead imposed the Border.

To cap it all, when the Irish signed the Good Friday Agreement, drawing a line of reconciliation under all of that, English Brexiteers voted to tear it up.

Blaming ‘Paddy’ for “the shame and degradation wrought upon the people of Ireland” is indefensible.

Anthony Leavy, Sutton, Dublin 13

​The word that dare not speak its name

Sir — In response to Eilis O’Hanlon’s piece last week questioning why the kids are not all right, the word that dare not speak its name is “homophobia”. I promise the author will not be more injured by the word than gay people are by the act itself.

Adam Hurley, Stoneybatter, Dublin 7

​I think we all know what Jesus would do

Sir — David Quinn explained last week that “it is often said the proper Christian response to asylum-seekers is to welcome the stranger”, saying this is good “as a general principle”, but qualifying this by reference to what he calls “the overall common good”.

Welcoming the stranger, we are told, was the instruction given to his followers by Jesus, as reported in the Gospel of Matthew. No qualification was sought or provided.

I wonder how Mr Quinn reconciles this divergence from the teachings of Christ with his Iona Institute’s charitable tax status, granted (according to the Charities Regulator) for “the advancement of the Christian religion”.

Bernie Linnane, Dromahair, Co Leitrim

​Alcohol labels won’t hurt — and may help

Sir — Much has been written about the labelling of alcohol products.

The argument that no one will read them is made by some, who say they will have no effect.

If that’s the case, why the relentless objections by the alcohol industry?

Warning labels on products are nothing new — we find them on many items, from children’s toys to medication to power tools. The option is there to read, to heed or to ignore, but the need for warning labels on alcohol products is not something we can close our eyes to.

John Higgins, Ballina, Co Mayo

Wretched situation at the University of Limerick has defeated me

Sir — Over the last 10 years or so, I have written scores of letters (to the Limerick Leader, the Sunday Independent, junior ministers, government agencies, university personnel and others) expressing genuine concern at the dire management failings of the University of Limerick (UL) and alarm at the refusal of the authorities to deal with them.

The wretched situation at UL and its utter avoidance of steps to address it came into the starkest relief yet at the last meeting of the Public Accounts Committee. That committee can do no more and, after reading Wayne O’Connor’s report in your paper (May 21), I have to say neither can I.

If the State is content with the image and reputation of the university education system that is being purveyed to the world at large, I must accept that that is the outcome of democratic process and I will sheath my pen.

As Martin Luther said (and UL president Kerstin Mey will understand this, even if her betters do not): “Ich kann nicht anders.” Translation: “I can’t do anything more.”

My final protest.

Jeremy Callaghan, Caherconlish, Co Limerick

​Ban ball-throwing to let hurling flourish

Sir — In my youth, different county hurling teams were known by various names — Wexford were the Yellow Bellies, Kilkenny were the Cats and Tipperary were the Stonethrowers. Surely Limerick have more than earned the title of the Ballthrowers?

On a more serious note, modern-day hurling has been blighted by ball-throwing. It is anathema to the exquisite skills of the game. How many results would have been different if ‘illegal’ ball-throwing had been penalised?

While the fitness, strength and conditioning of modern-day players has gone through the roof, the many skills of the ancient game have become virtually extinct.

Will we ever see again the iconic JBM (Jimmy Barry-Murphy) goal, where he connected on an in-flight sliotar, or John Fenton’s goal, where he whipped on the sliotar on the ground from way out the field to send it to the roof of the net? Or Richie Hogan’s volleyed goal against Tipp, or Mick Brophy connecting in the air on an Ollie Walsh puck and sending it straight over the bar.

The common thread in all these scores is that the sliotar was not handled; it was pure hurling, not handball.

Maybe it’s time for the GAA to become more radical and have no handling of the sliotar at all, then the stick men and women would come to the fore and hurling once again would become a game of spectacular skills. Sure, any Tom, Dick or Harry can throw a ball.

Joseph Mackey, Glasson, Co Westmeath

Gardaí needed to police our streets

Sir — On the eve of Christmas Eve, I was in Sun Bear Gelato, a tiny ice cream shop on Dawson Street in Dublin, just checking that everything was OK. I had closed for the winter. I sat down at the back of the shop to check emails on my phone, when out the blue there was a male and female in on top of me.

During my career, I worked in a few very rough pubs in the UK and saw a lot of heavy-duty fights. But when I looked up at that couple, I saw an evil in their eyes I had never seen before. I knew immediately I was in trouble. Luckily, I drove myself out over the female, bruising myself against a table. All I could hear was her saying: “The f**king bastard’s getting away.”

The two of them came shouting and roaring after me. There was a few euro on the table that they stole. Then they strolled down Dawson Street, flicking over coffee cups on outside tables. They didn’t care who was looking — they knew no one was going to confront them.

About six Sundays ago, there was an altercation on Dawson Street that quickly resulted in a major garda presence. For one moment I thought the reason was because of what had happened to me, but I soon copped that US president Joe Biden was going to be staying in Dublin the following week and any incidents were going to be dealt with straight away.

Before and during Covid, the city centre was like a little village and everyone had their own thing going on. I sold gelato, the homeless did their begging and the gardaí kept an eye on it all. That has changed. There are people roaming around the city who are not well. They should be in care facilities.

David Hennessy, Dawson Street, Dublin 2

​Cara (12) fights as politicians sit back

Sir — Last week, Children’s Minister Roderic O’Gorman at long last appointed a director to oversee the excavation and recovery of children’s remains at the former mother and baby home in Tuam, where over 800 infants are buried in a sewage chamber of sorts.

I am struck how, even in 2023, that we still push vulnerable children down the line when we are awash with money.

In years to come we will look back with shame on modern Ireland’s current ways. Child disability services for vulnerable children are a disgrace and have been for decades.

We have Cara Darmody, a wonderful 12-year-old girl with a heart of gold who is fighting to raise awareness of autism and for better services. Her dedication should embarrass our politicians, especially those who put tax cuts before our most precious children.

Aidan Roddy, Cabinteely, Dublin 18