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THOSE WHO HAVE not paid their Irish Water bills may still owe money, even if the utility is scrapped under any plan by the next government, Fianna Fáil warned today.
The party’s transport spokesperson Timmy Dooley told RTÉ News at One that charges imposed by Irish Water are legal and may not be retrospectively cancelled under law.
If or when a law is enacted to abolish charges, those who have not paid may still owe the money, he explained.
His party is currently in the final stages of drafting a new law to scrap Irish Water and suspend water charges.
He said – if enacted – it will “bring an end to the charges from that point forward”.
Dooley added that he did not expect people to be fined for not paying, but assumes there would still be a remaining outstanding debt.
On the staffing question, he said some Irish Water employees would be offered a redundancy plan, while others would be transferred back to the local authorities. He conceded that there may be a number “surplus to requirements” who could be laid off.
While talks to form the next government continue, other parties are also discussing what to do with their Irish Water-induced headaches.
Sinn Féin has proposed that an independent commission be set up to examine the best way to deliver water services.
What to do with Irish Water
Gerry Adams today said his party’s proposed commission would operate under “strict terms of reference” to prevent it from making certain findings.
He argued that it would not be allowed to return a finding that the best model is the one that currently exists under the Irish Water brand.
“They cannot do that,” he said, adding that the commission would be given specific terms of reference to work with.
It can’t if it’s given terms of reference, which I have just outlined. All these commissions, all of these bodies which are set up to do certain jobs of work are given terms of reference. So the terms of reference are ‘what’s the best public model for ownership of water and for water as a human right’.
He said the commission could not return a recommendation that Irish Water should be kept and said his party would not support any finding that charges should be higher than those already in place.
Scrapping water charges
Adams reiterated Sinn Féin’s wish to scrap water charges completely.
We are firmly of the view that you’re charged for water already. The second charge that came out of a little deal the government did with the Troika.
He compared his party’s vision for the operation of the commission as being much like a ‘kitchen conversion’.
“I don’t know what you guys don’t understand. If you ask me to do a job of work, whatever it is, you want to convert my kitchen, right. You give me the terms of reference, you tell me the type of kitchen you want. You tell me the price you want and so forth. And I’m obliged to go and honour that. I don’t go and make your kitchen into a dining room.”
Respect the findings
Earlier, Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó’Broin told RTÉ’s This Week programme that he did not believe the commission would return a finding that Irish Water should remain in its current existence.
However, he acknowledged that if an independent commission is set up to look at the best model of water service supply, then there is a “responsibility to accept its recommendations when they come back”.
Pearse Doherty weighed in on the discussion on RTÉ’s News at One programme stating that it has long been his party’s stance that they are opposed to water charges and are in favour of their abolition.
He said the terms of reference would look at the best model for the governance of the utility, how to make it accountable to the Dáil and what type of board would be in operation.
How a water services utility would operate
“The idea it would work outside its terms of reference and that we would reintroduce water charges is just laughable,” he said.
Doherty said his party has legislation ready to go that would abolish water charges, but says it cannot be tabled yet. He asked Fianna Fáil to support the motion so the issue “can be dealt with once and for all”.
In terms of Sinn Féin supporting Fianna Fáil’s bill to scrap Irish Water and suspend water charges, Adams said Fianna Fáil’s plan does not go far enough.
Adams said he wanted to see the detail in the plan. “They are playing catch up with us on this issue,” he said.
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FG and Irish water, two of the most tr@itorous things in 100 years
You’re right there, but don’t ever forget to add FF in there as well.
FF are fooling nobody with their doublespeak. They ran on a promise to abolish water charges. They want to ‘abolish’ water charges for 5 years.
Thats suspending, NOT abolishing.
Willie O’Dea has already rowed back from his stance on national TV that they would be abolished for good.
If it takes another election which amounts to little more than a referendum on water charges then so be it. Fianna Fail aren’t getting away with this one…..
Just to help you… Parties in Ireland get voted into government for 5 years therefore they they will not bring in charges for next government.
So they would comeback to the country saying they would need charges and people could vote on that then…
Saying never is irresponsible and populist if crap
And if the commission decides that IW is the way to go your party is gonna look very foolish.
@ jack: FF have already stated that they will cancel water charges only until the infrastructure is improved. Now that may well be in more tan 5 years time, but it has nothing to do with the Dail term. They will bring the charges back when they can get away with it.
Just to help you.
You are not understanding the point for Connolly. The infrastructure has to he improved drastically. When this is done and only when this is done will F.F. suggest water charges after a free allowance is given. It will be part of their next manifesto in five years time.
You have to have terms of reference, that’s pretty clear. We could have a commission to decide what’s the best way to run the country and the answer is become a satellite of Switzerland so really having a terms of reference makes sense.
@ doorhandler : I more than understand the point. I understood that the infrastructure needed to be improved long before a half billion euro was wasted on meters instead of fixing the leaks. I understood it before 100 million was spent on consultants. I understood it before two thirds of our motor tax was pilfered to pay for this superquango.
All valid points if we were talking about the history of water infrastructure under F.G. and Labour however the article is about the future of our water systems and how the next government should deal with the situation.
For Connolly when the plan was for eventual privatisation meters was going to be the goose that laid the golden egg, no huge profit margins in flat rates.
The meter rollout program isn’t finished by any means. The ones they installed are not in use. So stop now. Why tackle the smaller problem finding leaks at households when bigger leaks are ignored? One answer: privitisation.
Thats’s a 9.5% bonus for the management who decided to accelerate the metering. But probably 19.5% in their self assessment world.
Numbers not paying growing.. This quango is slowly suffocating…
Most never did Willy, despite the efforts of the media and Rte to convince us otherwise
I I have never and will never be be a customer of this quango. I owe them nothing.
Fianna Fáil smell an election. Like the proverbial chameleon they change their colours in response to changes in environment. Wolves in sheeps clothing.
They are more like sheep in sheep’s clothing.
tiresome,, each as bad as the other
How long can they go before we have to go for another election?
Right now we have a Mexican standoff. Everyone knows they could lose their seat, but everyone’s waiting to see wha the other crowd are doing
I agree – just call it. Enda has shown his usual decisiveness in trying to get 17 independents to support him. No doubt he was vocal when Bertie had to use 4. He should call his minions together and make a decision. Personally I don’t his position is tenable.
IW has to go. 9% bonus for a under-performing senior manager sets the tone. And silence of the unions as the term “work at risk” was brought into the domain. Also brings into focus that the other utilities are also ripping us off.
A centralised approach to water management run from the DoE is a good first step. The vested interests like Kelly will disagree no doubt.
We don’t have an official Taoiseach. Only the president can dissolve the Dail and trigger an election. He can insist the parties work together.
DoE who gave us eVoting??? Misplaced faith i think…
Collectively as a nation, we have paid in or around 25 BILLION in the last 20 years for our water services! DONT EVER LET ANYONE TELL YOU WE DONT ALREADY PAY!
You definitely plucked that number from your orifice.
1.2 Billion over 20 years is 24 Billion. Every party, including FG have stated that we pay around 1.2 Billion a year through central and motor taxation.
Less than they plan to invest in Anglo.
We bailed Anglo out at a cost of 31 billion. Bailing out all the bank’s cost the tax payer 64 billion. This hammers home why they are pushing property,water and whatever other taxes on us along with austerity
The most amusing thing so far this week was FG’s Masterplan to retain Irish Water, but to change its name – presumably so we won’t recognise it! What a load of hooey. As for FF, those of them re-elected and newly elected became so on a platform of the abolition of Irish Water and water charges – they now seem to partially resile from that view and seek to ‘suspend’ water charges for five years. We are some gobdaws in this country.
We don’t deserve a government. What kind of a clown votes for fianna fail after the damage they done.
About 26% of the voters?
I signed no contract with this private company. It’s against EU law to force someone to enter into a contract with a private company against their will.
Just trying to figure out how can somone owe money to a private company especially if you have no contract with them?!? I’m a Sky customer and I don’t see Virgin media banging down my door threatening to raid my wages if I refuse to contract…
Marc. I’ve had no meter installed as I parked my car over the shore for a week. I’ve also had no contact with them or signed anything at all and your right how can a company claim your a customer if you haven’t agreed to be one, it’s farcical really. I think it’s because we’ve taken so much chap from the government and banks that they know that they can throw any old rubbish at us and expect us to swallow it.
Question is how many people took the bribe?
They simply underestimated their people Aoife :)
Never will I pay in to this morally hollow, corrupt attempt to rob the Irish people of their water supply.
Are FF for flipping!
FF and FG think they’re the only two that can form a gov. They don’t see anybody else as a threat. They only want the others to make up the numbers and then they think they can push them aside in gov. So probably the best solution is to get rid of both FF and FG in the seemingly imminent upcoming election. They both had their chance, and they effed it up. A lot of the independents are a lot more capable than most in these partys anyway.
Enda clinging desperately to power like a man dangling over a waterfall.
We need iceland’s td’s and ways to do things right.
More bollocks!
It’s really not on the agenda… it’s never happening
Poor fecker in the photo..
Be a male model they said… It will be fun, they said …
Totes clickbait
No Jarrett, your confusing me to the bankers!
“We will establish a commission that is not allowed to make findings we don’t like”
A vision of SF governance
How`re ye Ronnie One-eye
Flip Flop Fein…..
Finally we see the small trickle of democracy returning.
Well done to the parties for showing leadership.
Democracy?
100 TDs elected to abolish Irish Water being blocked from doing so by 50 TDs whose government has just been sacked.
Ireland is suffering from electile dysfunction.
Surely focus should be on hospitals, housing and homelessness. Baffled that there is still so much noise about Irish water.
have your say