Irish Examiner view: Consequences to long-haul journeys

Thu, 09 Nov, 2023 - 01:00

Beef exports

The Tánaiste’s trip to the Far East has not been without its hiccups, As reported here, his bad luck with planes continues to manifest itself at inopportune times, but a far more serious issue than flight delays has arisen in recent days.

Last Tuesday, the Department of Agriculture confirmed that tests carried out at its Central Veterinary Research Laboratory had identified a case of atypical BSE. Though the animal in question did not enter the food chain, beef exports to China have now been suspended temporarily; those exports had only resumed earlier this year after a previous case of atypical BSE was reported back in 2020.

This revelation occurs at a particularly sensitive time — just as negotiations with South Korea to allow Irish beef exports were showing signs of progress. According to Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue, the next phase of access to the Korean market had been reached during a recent trade visit, with that country’s parliament about to consider the issue with a view to progressing matters.

How the revelations about BSE and the suspension of Chinese exports will affect Korean thinking is not yet clear, but they will hardly aid the Irish cause.

It was unsurprising, therefore, to hear the Irish Farmers’ Association state that the suspension is “disappointing and must be resolved quickly”.

Irish beef has earned a high reputation for quality around the world, and it is to be hoped that this suspension does not last long, but trading with such far-flung partners means other factors also need to be considered.

For instance, exporting beef to Korea would involve journeys of over 9,000km to reach that market, at a time of acute sensitivity about carbon emissions. On those grounds, it’s difficult to mount a robust defence of transporting meat over such long distances.

Irish producers are of course free to seek out markets wherever they can find them, but the environmental implications of such long-distance trading do not seem to be a consideration in seeking those markets. We may all suffer in the long term for that lack of consideration.

Customer accounts breach

Around 8,000 Electric Ireland customers received a worrying communication yesterday — a letter telling them their accounts may have been compromised.

The letter from the energy company stated that “a person working on our behalf may have been accessing Electric Ireland customer details to facilitate financial fraud... Electric Ireland has established that your account may have been compromised, including your name, address, date of birth, telephone number, email address, and bank account details”. It is understood that gardaí made Electric Ireland aware of the issue.

This is the ultimate fear of all consumers when paying bills online — that somehow, somewhere, some person is waiting to exploit a customer’s personal details for their own gain, the kind of furtive crime that may be a secret for months before being uncovered.

Or years, in fact. In its communication with customers, Electric Ireland has advised them to review their bank statements for suspicious activity back to October 2021, which suggests that this has been an issue for two full years, at least.

In itself, this is deeply concerning; that such activity may have been going on for years without the company being aware of it, not to mention the fact that gardaí had to inform the energy provider about what was going on. The latter disclosure suggests Electric Ireland’s internal control mechanisms are far short of what is required in this regard.

Sympathy in this matter will be in short supply for Electric Ireland, not just because the company has allowed this to take place, apparently for years, but because of its track record when it comes to billing customers.

Only last month, the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU) said Electric Ireland had breached the conditions of its licences by overcharging 48,000 electricity gas customers around €1.1m as well as issuing delayed bills to another 25,000 customers.

The CRU accepted that the company had self-reported both incidents and co-operated with its inquiry but also noted that it was not the first instance of delayed billing by Electric Ireland that it had to examine.

Now there are even more incidents to examine, and Electric Ireland faces an uphill task in re-establishing consumer confidence in its operations.

2023 Holly Bough

'Holly Bough' cover illustrator Fiona Foley, Echo Boy Dave Hogan, 'Holly Bough' editor John Dolan, and 'The Echo' editor Grainne McGuinness at the launch of the 2023 'Holly Bough' in Oliver Plunkett St, Cork. Picture: Jim Coughlan

One of the unmistakable markers of Christmas — particularly in Cork — is now visible to all. The 2023 Holly Bough is on sale in shops, on the streets, and online, the traditional sign that the festive season is on the horizon and approaching fast.

The Holly Bough has been an integral part of Christmas on Leeside since it was first published in 1897 — appropriately enough, this year, one of the first people to get a copy was Lord Mayor of Cork Kieran McCarthy, a keen local historian and frequent contributor to the publication.

This year, editor John Dolan invited Fiona Foley, of Toames, near Macroom, to come up with a cover illustrating famous Cork landmarks from St Fin Barre’s Cathedral to Beamish & Crawford and on to the old Examiner offices, copperfastening the association between the annual publication and Cork.

Not every tradition has the ability to sustain itself in three different centuries, but the Holly Bough has shown its power down the decades. For Cork people at home and abroad, Christmas wouldn’t be the same without it.

Irish Examiner view: Voluntary smartphone ban will be disregarded by many parents