Brian Cowen decried the standards of political discourse last week. On his post-budget tour of the airwaves, he repeatedly referenced Eamon Gilmore's accusation that he, Cowen, was guilty of economic treason.

He may have a point. Effectively branding him a traitor is way over the top. At the same time, Cowen might have admitted that standards of governance over the last decade were nothing to write home about either.

Standards of decency have obviously declined, as evidenced by the cuts to allowances for carers and people with disabilities in last week's budget.

Standards elsewhere have similarly plummeted. In banking, the dour, cautious bank manager of old was, during the bubble years, replaced by Mr Bling, firing out money in a risk-free world. Standards of regulation were a joke, and we all know what the result of that was.

However, it isn't just among the clowns and crooks that standards have gone south since the turn of the century. The fever that gripped this country in that time ensured that standards in general embarked down a slippery slope.

Two items to come to attention last week illustrate the point.

On Monday, a court heard that Noel Keegan and his wife Marie were victims of a totally unprovoked assault in Longford on 31 December 2009. Noel Keegan had a heart condition. He died a few minutes after being attacked. The assailant, Martin McDonagh, should not have been at large.

He had been on temporary release from a previous two-year sentence for another violent crime. He shouldn't have been granted temporary release, because, while in prison, he was convicted of another violent assault, which drew a four-year sentence.

A report into the affair by Judge Michael Reilly found that up to 25 members of An Garda Síochána should have been aware that he was unlawfully at large. The prison service should never have released him. The probation service should have informed the gardaí that McDonagh was not attending for supervision. As a result of all this sloppiness, McDonagh was free on New Year's Eve last year to attack the Keegans, resulting in the death of 58-year-old Noel and shattering the lives of his wife and family.

The whole affair exposes the lack of rigour that once was applied to basic procedures right across the public service. How, in this age of communication, could such a cock-up have been perpetrated? Where was the basic application of standards and procedures?

The criminal justice system is just one arm of the state, but the Keegan case illustrates how during a time of illusory plenty, money stepped in, while standards stepped out.

Through the bubble years, money was thrown at the criminal justice system. A bright, shiny new criminal courts building was opened near the Phoenix Park last year, at a cost of €291m. At the outset, the estimated cost was €120m. Money was no problem, despite the case for provision of a new complex being barely merited.

During the tenure of the last government, the big wheeze in criminal justice was garda numbers. How fast could we get to the magical 14,000 in order to gain the upper hand on the so-called war on crime. Numbers are ideal material for spin, and spin is what it was all about.

Meanwhile, as evidenced in the Keegan case, basic standards were going through the floor. Who cared a whit for doing things the proper way when there was buckets of money available to pour onto any troubled waters?

Another example came to light in the education sector last week. An OECD report was published showing that Ireland is now at 17th place in literacy skills for 15-year-olds, having fallen from sixth place in 2000. In maths, Ireland dropped from 16th to 26th in just three years. The study shows that almost a quarter of Irish 15-year-olds are below the level of literacy required to participate effectively in society. Armed with such information, who exactly is going to invest here to avail of the smart economy of our dreams?

There are mitigating factors accounting for the drop in standards. A considerable immigrant population and the integration of special needs pupils into the mainstream have had an impact. But even allowing for that, plenty of money was pumped into education through the decade. Pupil-teacher ratios received serious attention, and were improved. The thrust of policy was reduced once again to a numbers game. Meanwhile, according to the OECD, standards were slipping, the much- vaunted education which contributed hugely to the real boom between 1995 and 2001 was no more.

And it's not just schools which bear responsibility for the drop in standards. Literacy levels are also dependant on what occurs in the home. A study by the Educational Research Centre in Drumcondra found that by the age of 12 more than six in 10 children have a television in their bedroom. Another study last year, entitled 'Growing Up In Ireland', recorded that more than a third of nine year olds had a video console in their rooms. The growth in such luxuries has been mirrored by a decline in the number of books gracing the average home. While there was money prioritised for TVs and video games over the decade, the more time-consuming business of reading to, or with, children received far less attention.

Vested interests would have us believe we are all responsible for what has befallen the country. This is patent hogwash. But there is definitely a case to be made that standards in many facets of life fell during those years. Society was seduced into believing that material comfort was easily attained. As a result, many took their eyes off the ball while striving to succeed under the illusion of plenty. Performing the basics was regarded as an optional extra.

Now that the smoke has cleared, maybe the country has a chance to reinvest energy in retrieving and maintaining proper standards. At least it could be something positive to focus on in these times of austerity.

mclifford@tribune.ie