Sir, – The report by Harry McGee ("Two-term coalition possible, says Quinn", February 14th) quotes the Minister for Education as saying that a second consecutive term in office for the coalition might be achievable on the grounds that Fianna Fáil "are so weakened and so low in numbers".
The average age of the Cabinet will be 61.2 years and the average age of the current members of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary will be 52½ years of age in February 2016, the latest possible time for 31st Dáil to be dissolved. The average age of the Ahern governments, on assuming office in 2002 and 2007, was 49½ and 50 years of age respectively.
Would the Coalition’s aspirations for a second successive mandate be enhanced by stronger evidence of succession planning and the Cabinet having a significantly younger age profile at the time of the next general election, given that the median age of the population had only advanced by only six months of age to 36.1 years between the census of 2006 and 2011? – Yours, etc,
MYLES DUFFY,
Bellevue Avenue,
Glenageary, Co Dublin.