Sir, – Fintan O’Toole’s view (Opinion, October 11th) that our public sector pay is roughly in line with Europe is fundamentally flawed. His analysis is based on 2008 OECD figures using the so-called purchasing power parity method (what your salary actually buys in the real world). But, if you’re living in a bubble world where all prices, property, rents, rates, hotels, restaurants, or a cup of coffee are multiples of the price in the rest of Europe, you must stop for a reality check.
In an open economy, like ours, if you succumb to the temptation of raising wages to match bubble prices you destroy our competitiveness and destroy hundreds of thousands of jobs in the process. Even now, in 2011, we are borrowing like crazy people to fund a massive public sector pay and welfare bubble. Have we learned nothing from the property bubble? Mr O’Toole, back to the drawing a board, and give us some real figures. – Yours, etc,