Sir, – Bobby Carty (Letters, January 25th) writes that the bailout package following the financial crash of 2008 “showed the collective strength of the EU and its ability to help out those in need in time of crisis”.
The bailout package provided by the EU and the IMF consisted of loans to the Irish State, and those in need who mainly benefitted were senior bondholders who had gambled and lost. Irish taxpayers (the majority of whom did not “party” prior to the crash) continue to carry the burden of repaying these loans. The EU and the IMF were quite selective in choosing those in need they were willing to assist at the time of the crisis. – Yours, etc,
TOM KELLY,
Dublin 7.