Dublin South West Sinn Féin TD, Seán Crowe, has said that comments by former Minister of State in the Department of Environment, Fergus O’Dowd, on Irish Water, confirm the general view that the establishment and operation of the new company is a mess and getting messier.

Former Minister O’Dowd – the man who established Irish Water- has criticised and described the company as ‘an unmitigated disaster’.

Deputy Seán Crowe said:

“It is clear that Irish Water is not fit for purpose and Fergus O’Dowd is correct in his comments regarding the arrogant manner in which this particular company operates.

“Although the former Minister opposed the sensible Sinn Féin amendments to the legislation which his government railroaded through Leinster House, I welcome his comments, even at this late stage.

“Sinn Féin strongly protested the way the Water Services Bill was rushed through the Dáil and on the last sitting day of 2013, over 30 TDs left the Dáil chamber in protest at the governments legislative rush job.

“We have already highlighted the massive 50 million being spent on consultants and the unacceptably high salaries and bonuses made available to upper management in Irish Water.

“Deputy O’ Dowd says he continuously articulated concerns about how Irish Water was run, and despite making the point at every high-level meeting that disadvantaged groups should not suffer an unfair burden, he was ignored.

“That contrasts sharply with the high level of charges now being placed on households, and the abject failure to take into account the ability of individuals and families to pay, many who are low-income, disadvantaged, disabled or in their senior years.

“Deputy O’Dowd points out that Irish Water has become ‘another cosseted quango with a bonus culture and says he simply ‘could not believe it’ when he heard last January that bonuses were to be paid to Irish Water staff.

“He says that he, along with many others, raised his concerns about PPS numbers, but what he continually ignored was the likely future scenario of the company being privatised.

“A simple change to the legislation could, we believe, ensure that the established, and hugely expensive, Irish Water company could remain in public ownership.

“I am also calling for the current board of Irish Water to be removed and replaced with one that is comprised of people democratically appointed.

“The comments by former junior Environment Minister Fergus O’Dowd are a devastating indictment of Irish Water, of the new Water Tax and another example of the dysfunctionality of this government.This should include representatives of ordinary households who are being asked to fork out for these new unreasonable water bills.

“The Irish Water fiasco involved huge sums of public money being pumped into a body that was neither wanted nor needed. A body that will shortly issue Water Charge bills on the direction of a discredited government, to people who cannot afford to pay

“The government needs to acknowledge that many, many households simply cannot afford to pay the Water Tax.

“They need to give struggling families and hard pressed citizens a break by abolishing this unfair and unjust double tax.”

ENDS