Enniskillen is not the nearest shopping point for residents on the Republic side of the border

Assistant chief constable Alan Todd of the PSNI suggested in Friday’s News Letter that for many people living in the Republic of Ireland (RoI), Enniskillen would be their closest town (May 8).
By Ken Funston
Published 12th May 2020, 00:48 GMT
Updated 12th May 2020, 00:54 GMT
Enniskillen is 11 miles from the border and a southern shopper visiting it would have to ignore other border townsEnniskillen is 11 miles from the border and a southern shopper visiting it would have to ignore other border towns
Enniskillen is 11 miles from the border and a southern shopper visiting it would have to ignore other border towns

(The article can be read here: ‘PSNI defend southern shoppers coming into NI after clampdown on northerners going into Donegal’).

I can only presume geography is not Mr Todd’s strongest subject, and maybe he should consider looking at a map before coming out with such an unconsidered statement.

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Enniskillen is 11 miles from the nearest border crossing in County Cavan, which has one of the worst rates for C19 in the RoI.

Letter to the editorLetter to the editor
Letter to the editor

For a resident of that county to drive to Enniskillen, they would have to ignore their own border towns such as Blacklion, Swanlinbar and Ballyconnell.

Then they would have to drive through Northern Ireland towns such as Belcoo, Derrylin, Newtownbutler and even the large busy town of Lisnaskea.

Unfortunately it appears that little thought was given to his statement and rather than suggesting it was okay for southern shoppers to visit what he refers to as the ‘border town’ of Enniskillen, he should be advising them to adhere to the lockdown rules during this emergency.

Ken Funston, Fermanagh

Related topics:EnniskillenPSNIRepublic of IrelandDonegalLisnaskea