Protest against ‘back door’ water charges
Water service workers from both Cork city and county councils will demonstrate on Leeside this Saturday calling for the Government to commit to a referendum on the ownership of Irish Water.
The workers are also protesting against the premature ending of a service level agreement (SLA) which will see Irish Water become the standalone national body for water services next year.
Initially, the SLA was set to be in place until 2026, which workers felt would allow enough time for a referendum to be achieved to constitutionally protect water services in Ireland from being privatised in the future. However, water service workers in local authorities now say they are unsure of what the future holds for them.
Speaking to the Cork Independent, spokesperson for Cork water service workers John Mullins said the Government needs to see that people want a referendum on the ownership of Irish Water.
He said: “The Government failed to bring in water charges through the front door and I think now they're trying to bring them in through the back door.”
“If there's no referendum and Irish Water have a free run on this, there's going to be a major battle ahead again with water service charges. I think the general public need to be aware of this.
“We are afraid that on the first sign of a recession, Irish Water could be sold off to the highest bidder. I think the Irish people are looking for leadership and I think people are only itching to get back on the streets to protest against this Government.”
Earlier this month, the Government announced that Irish Water is to be rebranded as Uisce Éireann as it becomes the sole water services body for the country.
Shortly after the announcement, it was confirmed that there would be no compulsory transfer of local authority staff to Uisce Éireann (Irish Water)
Mr Mullins said workers, many of whom have given decades of service, are reluctant to transfer next year.
He said: “Some of them have given 40 years' service and at the stroke of a pen, that could just be taken away from them.
“We are not going to transfer over to Irish Water because we basically don't trust them. We don't know what lies in store for us. There's no clarity. This is coming in 2023, like it or lump it.”
Saturday’s demonstration will take place on the Grand Parade from 1pm and all are welcome to attend.
“We are hoping that the demo might show people that it is okay to protest and get out there and we hope that the general public will row in behind us,” concluded Mr Mullins.