Sir, - While life may not have changed all that much in the new millennium, the Central Bank has for some odd reason printed an abundance of £50 notes. Possession of even one of these once rare species highlights certain factors:
1. The feel good factor: If, like myself, the Celtic Tiger has not made you a penny richer, at least now you stand a better chance of seeing what a £50 note looks like - better still, you could own one.
2. The forget factor: The hugely accumulated profits which banks have grossed over recent years have been well-documented. It is thus in some ways understandable that the Central Bank would forget that quite a few items still cost less than £5. Issuing £50 notes for payment of such produce is more of a hindrance than a help.
3. The far-in-the-past factor: Seeing one of these £50 notes featuring a smiling Douglas Hyde reminds us that there once existed, sometime in the distant past, the phenomenon of a male President of Ireland.
Oh, how times have changed. - Yours, etc.,
John O Callaghan, Clashnagarrane, Killarney, Co Kerry.