While Taoiseach Simon Harris rightly acknowledges the global migration crisis and the need for a co-ordinated EU response, it is essential to consider the broader context of Ireland’s foreign policy and the domestic repercussions.
Ireland’s decision to recognise the state of Palestine, although morally commendable, highlights the interconnectedness of international actions and domestic consequences.
This recognition, while aligning with our values, seems to have contributed to an increase in asylum- seekers from the Middle East.
This is not to suggest we should shy away from making principled stands on the global stage, but rather that we should be fully aware of the potential domestic outcomes of such decisions.
Furthermore, the issue of migration is exacerbated by our chronic under-investment in key public sectors.
The shortage of housing, healthcare, education and childcare resources has turned what could be a manageable situation into a crisis.
This is a failure of successive governments, particularly Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, that have overseen these sectors for decades.
The lack of adequate planning and resources to accommodate new arrivals, whether they be migrants or home-bound citizens, has made the situation more dire.
It is clear that if we wish to address the challenges posed by increased migration, we need a twofold approach.
First, our foreign policy decisions must be made with a full understanding of their potential domestic effects.
Second, we need to prioritise investment in public services to ensure our society can cohesively absorb new members, rather than strain under the pressure.
Ireland must continue to uphold its humanitarian values while also ensuring we are prepared for the realities that follow.
The key to this balance lies in prudent policy-making and a commitment to strengthening our national infrastructure.
Killian Brennan, Malahide Road, Dublin 17
Weak case by Government for exemption of actively farmed land from new tax
The case for fully exempting zoned and serviced development land that is being farmed from the Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) is very weak.
Most of the time, development land values are rising, so if holding on to it is costless, there is often an incentive to delay making it available for construction.
However, the current version of the RZLT disproportionately penalises active farmers, because an annual charge of 3pc of development value is likely to be a small fraction of the profit made on building and selling housing on a site, but a multiple of the amount a normal farmer will make by continuing to farm it.
RZLT in its current form forcefully pushes farmers to put their land on the market as quickly as possible, while developers are mildly encouraged not to delay too long before building.
The “mild encouragement” approach could be extended to actively farmed land, by applying a suitably reduced rate to it.
Retention of development land in an undeveloped state should never be costless, but the amounts charged should take account of the differing circumstances of different types of owner.
I have outlined how this could work in more detail in the chapter on development land in The Irish Construction Cycle.
Dr Nicholas Mansergh, Friarsfield, Co Tipperary
Informative radio brings particular comfort to the people of rural Ireland
Frank Coughlan’s piece (‘Radio is a safe port in this world full of noise and nonsense’, Irish Independent, August 20) hit the nail on the head.
He went on to say it’s a medium that keeps the head while all around are losing theirs and where content is more important than performance.
In rural Ireland in particular, local radio keeps the countryside well informed about local matters as well as the goings-on in national and world affairs.
Here in the west and north-west, we have the musings of Midwest Radio, Ocean FM, Highland Radio and Shannonside to keep us all up to speed on a daily basis of the happenings in our under-developed region.
Tommy Marren of Midwest and Niall Delaney of Ocean, among many others, produce brilliant morning programmes that keep us all up to date on the topical matters of the day.
The first thing we do when we get out of the cot each morning is turn on the radio and tune in to get the latest hot topic. They never disappoint.
Tom Towey, Cloonacool, Co Sligo
Trump’s reliance on nasty personal jibes is a sure sign he is losing the battle
Do Donald Trump and his advisers not know that when you get personal with your opponent, in this instance Kamala Harris, you are losing the argument or battle?
When you denigrate a person because of their looks, race or how they sound, you are no longer credible.
Trump should have learned from his last failed run for the presidency that getting personal with your opponent never pays.
Richard Whitty, Swords, Co Dublin
Lovers of small-ball game should be worried about its unrelenting decline
Frank Roche (‘Conor Burke wants next Blues boss to build on Micheál Donoghue’s legacy’, Irish Independent, Sport, August 15), in an appraisal of the state of hurling in Dublin, writes that whoever takes up the vacant Dublin hurling reins will inherit a squad not quite in flux, but certainly in transition.
This transition has lasted 86 years. Despite one in five of the population of the country living in the greater Dublin area, Dublin’s last senior hurling title win was in 1938 when Joe Louis was world heavyweight champion, General Franco was in the thick of the Spanish Civil War and Douglas Hyde was president of Ireland.
It was 1961 when Dublin last played in an All-Ireland hurling final, losing to Tipperary by a point.
The rapid decline of Wexford, Antrim, Waterford and, to a lesser degree, Cork senior hurling teams in recent years should set alarm bells ringing, not just in Croke Park but with all lovers of the small-ball game.
With a population over 1.2 million and some wonderful hurlers and hurling clubs around the county, Dublin should be doing better.
Tom Cooper, Templeogue, Dublin 6