Madam, - Anthony Coughlan (May 10th) yet again ties himself up in knots with the nonsense he spouts about sovereignty of nations and whether such a notion can be compatible with membership of the EU. My understanding of his arguments is that he contends that those have a say in European Union decision-making institutions are not accountable.
I would be grateful if Mr Coughlan can give any example of an Irish politician, or even a senior civil servant, being held accountable for any policy or process he or she has implemented. Over the past few years we have had many examples of policies that were badly drawn up and poorly implemented, resulting in a waste to Irish taxpayers of billions of euro, not to mention countless hours which should have been spent addressing other issues; yet I'm not aware of any politician or civil servant been held to account for these mistakes.
There is an argument for European decision-making to be more transparent - an argument equally relevant to our own legislators - with a first step being the right of MEPs to sit also in the Seanad. In addition, the media might take a more active role in assessing legislation proposed from Brussels, as it does in assessing legislation proposed, usually off the cuff without any background research on cost or practicalities, by Irish politicians.
Mr Coughlan is deluding himself if he seriously thinks anyone taking political decisions or implementing policy in Ireland is in any way more accountable than a person in the same role in Brussels. - Yours, etc,
DESMOND FITZGERALD, Canary Wharf, London E14.