Cummings did nothing wrong – so leave him be
I CANNOT understand why the media are allowed to harass Dominic Cummings incessantly over his trip to Durham, to protect his four-year-old child.
Any responsible parent would have done the same, and I am sure the majority of fair-minded people in Britain agree with me. The sad thing about this debacle is that it is done purely to undermine the UK prime minister, Boris Johnson. In carrying out this campaign, they underestimate the man who has a majority of over 80 seats, and he will certainly not be influenced by an irresponsible media, regardless of what others think.
Dominic Cummings’s trip to Durham was not a joy ride, unlike the tens of thousands of people who get into their car and go for a ride every weekend since the lockdown, just to escape the boredom of the virus travel restrictions. This is where the media should be concentrating instead of badgering this responsible parent.
Another sad aspect of this whole saga is the fact that some 22 Conservative MPs have come out against Dominic Cummings and the prime minister, over the handling of the affair. They are being disloyal to the prime minister, the Conservative Party, readers and viewers, and more importantly, the people who elected them. The time will come when that disloyalty will mean they will lose their seats, and quite rightly so.
JOHN FAIR, Castlebar, Co. Mayo. ... DOMINIC Cummings broke no rules or the law of the land as existing when he dashed to be with his family in their hour of need. When it comes to protecting our loved ones, we are, as parents and spouses worthy of the name, bound to do whatever is necessary in this regard.
If Mr Cummings had ignored his natural instincts, I believe this is the issue he should be held to account for. He did the right thing. But the man will never be forgiven for steering Boris Johnson to political success, not least by a shambolic Labour Party, and junior dissidents in the Tory ranks who may have personal gripes.
Dominic put his family first at a time when he was ‘allowed’ to. We do what we have to as human beings. Well done, sir. ROBERT SULLIVAN,
Bantry, Co. Cork.
Good luck, students
THREE cheers for the 2020 Leaving Cert class. They have been through the mill emotionally and mentally. They have suffered the distress of uncertainty and indecision. They have ploughed a lonely furrow, cocooned in a bubble of virtual reality during spring, the season of growth and vitality.
They have endured more turmoil than any Leaving Cert class that went before.
School’s out next Friday, so there will be no rite of passage for these young people. There will be no closure as they complete their second-level education. There will be no opportunity to say goodbye as the schools remain closed.
There will be no annual sports day nor Mass of farewell before moving on. There will be no graduation evening to attend with their proud parents, no celebration afterwards with their friends.
There will be no hugging, laughter nor tears to mark a significant watershed. There will be no selfies for the scrapbook, no autographs for the yearbook.
With the loss of the Leaving Cert there will be no butterflies in the stomach on the night before the exams. There will be no sigh of relief to have survived the first day of exams. There will be no effervescence of freedom when the final exam is done. There will be no post-exam holiday in Ibiza.
This cohort of resolute and resourceful young people deserve our very best wishes for their dreams and aspirations. They deserve the joy of success on results day. They deserve their ambitions of college places, apprenticeships, traineeships and employment opportunities to be fulfilled. I salute the 2020 Leaving Cert class for their fortitude and forbearance.
BILLY RYLE, Tralee, Co. Kerry.
End funeral limits
WHAT is wrong with our country that we have allowed the grieving of a deceased relative in churches and places of rest to be confined to just ten people? Where is the empathy, understanding and compassion in the continuance of this restriction? It is now beyond time that this restriction is lifted. It goes beyond every consideration imaginable that immediate family members have to remain outside as the funeral service of a loved one takes place.
You may point to them being necessary restrictions and there is some basis for that, but how do you equate it with what is allowed in other situations?
Dáil Éireann allows 45 of its 160 members to sit in the chamber at the same time, people are allowed queue with no restriction except to socially distance at supermarkets and gardening centres, and similarly buses and trains can also operate with seat restrictions. Bearing that in mind, surely family members can be allowed into churches which can easily accommodate hundreds of people.
Surely a system can be easily put in place to cordon off rows to allow family members to be in the church for funerals. They deserve better than to be treated this way in their time of grief, and all of us, (including Church hierarchy) should call for the immediate lifting of this restriction.
MARTIN QUINN, Tipperary.