VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE IN IRISH WATER In solidarity with the near 2,000 people who marched in Longford Town on 1st November, and the 150,000 throughout the country I wish to propose a vote of No Confidence in Irish Water. Since its inception the entity of Irish Water has being a fiasco of major proportions. The implementation of water charges is nothing more than an income generation exercise and an extra tax to appease a Troika but refuses to acknowledge the fundamental issue which is a persons ability to pay. Asking a person to pay for a product where the infrastructure is so neglected that up to 50% of the water produced is wasted through leaks the cost of which is being passed onto the consumer; a network where boil water notices are current in certain parts of the country is simply unacceptable. The Government cite the issue of conservation as being a principal reason in establishing the company, but would they not address that issue more efficiently by initiating a capital scheme with a view to upgrading the national network. The Government will say that we have no funds available to realise this, and that Irish Water is a conduit to raise the capital from the markets. Yet they were able to borrow €3.5 Billion a couple of weeks ago which they immediately signed over as part payment of the Bailout Fund! The unwillingness of the Government to place legislative guarantees around the utility to ensure that our precious resource is not delivered into the hands of private entities is a damning indictment of the public relations nightmare that is Irish Water. The moral issue of asking a person to pay into an entity that is tainted by bullying, bonus culture and cronyism is a bridge too far even for people who subscribe to the idea of paying for water as a utility. To conclude, Irish Water in its current situation is no longer a viable proposition for the Irish People. There are far too many anomalies and it has lost the confidence of too large a portion of the population to make it sustainable. I envisage that it would be a disaster of major proportions if implemented in its current form. I commend this motion to the members. I want to thank Cllr Mark Casey for seconding my proposal which was vehemently fought by some of the FG councillors, who unsuccessfully tried to pick holes in my argument. On a point of protocol it was deferred to next months meeting. I look forward to presenting this again in support of you guys. Regards Gerry
Posted on: Wed, 12 Nov 2014 19:41:46 +0000
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