Establishment should hang its head in shame

What an extraordinary political week it has been. The backdrop to the desultory by-election campaigns in Kildare and Meath has illustrated, if illustration were ever needed, the sheer mediocrity of our public services and political classes.

We are being robbed left, right and centre by our insurance companies. The consumer report last Monday once again pointed out that, despite Mary Harney's pre-election promises, nothing has changed.

Last Tuesday, it became obvious that the ...