Government slated on ‘Irish Water shambles’

The Government cannot continue to ignore the voice of the people over the Irish Water shambles, Deputy Timmy Dooley has warned.

The Fianna Fáil TD said the Government’s disastrous handling of the set-up of Irish Water has caused considerable public anger.

“At the weekend, I along with thousands of people from communities in every part of Clare, marched against the Government’s strategy and delivery on Irish Water. Fianna Fáil has been against the way Irish Water was set-up from the very beginning and the complete lack of debate on its establishment was a disgrace. This, together with the bonus-culture and over €50 million being spend on consultants, led to the huge numbers we saw in Clare protesting over the weekend.

“The protests included people against water charges of any sort, but also a sizeable section of people disgusted with how the Government has handled the issue. The complete lack of fairness by not including an ability to pay clause, utter confusion over allowances and millions of euro wasted on consultants has led to widespread public disillusionment,” he said.