But the Taoiseach, like anybody else, is only human and should, after an apology, be afforded forgiveness for his slip of the tongue. If it had happened like that the matter should rest there. Except it didn't happen like that.

In the first instance, the context of the Taoiseach's comment showed a massive lack of understanding of what suicide is. "Sitting on the sideline or the fence, cribbing and moaning, is a lost opportunity. In fact I don't know how people who engage in that don't commit suicide, " he said.

As Geraldine Clare, chief executive of Aware, pointed out, he equated people who died by suicide with "cribbers and moaners" while portraying himself as someone positive who got things done.

To compound matters, his careless use of language raised a laugh and some applause from the 400 delegates at the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) conference in Bundoran. To date there has been no apology from them.

Then the Taoiseach further offended with his smiling response to reporters after his speech.

"I apologise if I said it that way. I used it as an example about people who are always against things and looking around at things but I did not mean it like that, " he said.

What this shows us, according to Dan Neville, president of the Irish Association of Suicidology and a Fine Gael TD, is a mindset in the leader of the country and an appalling lack of understanding of a very serious issue.

Maureen Bolger, whose son Darren (16) took his own life, said: "The Taoiseach has obviously not lost anybody to suicide and I hope for his sake he never does. He should never have made an off -the-cuff remark like that and for people in the audience to have laughed. . ."

John and Mary McTernan from Dromahair, Co Leitrim lost their son Gary (24) to suicide. They were so incensed by the Taoiseach's comments they drove to Bundoran to confront him. He had already left.

This is not political correctness gone mad.

These are real people already suffering bereavements in terrible circumstances who have been further hurt.

And they are not alone. Ireland is in the top three countries in Europe with the highest suicide rates. Five hundred people die by suicide here each year . . . a figure that far surpasses road-accident fatalities.

There is an irony in the Taoiseach's lack of empathy given the sympathy he was afforded by the nation when he spoke on television of his separation and his financial arrangements.

And there is an irony that the topic he was addressing in Donegal was Ireland's prosperity and he made his comments while attacking critics of the government's economic performance. This competitive Celtic Tiger environment demands mental robustness and resiliance. It's a tough world for young people . . . more than half of Ireland's suicide victims each year are aged under 25.

The Taoiseach has lost a golden opportunity by not using his comments to open up a debate. His foot-in-the-mouth remarks and clumsy half apology could have been turned around to focus on the worrying issue of our growing suicide rate and the risk to our young people.

But in all the furore over what the Taoiseach said, let's save real anger for the devastating statistics on suicide and concentrate instead on recognising those at risk. The development of treatment, intervention and prevention programmes should be top of the agenda.

Heightened public awareness of the risks of suicide and improved access to care need to become priorities at government, local and personal level. Suicide needs to be on a par with road-safety campaigns if we are to make any difference to almost 500 people each year who see no other option but death.