That’s exactly what I thought..

….And the cost of the meter will be paid by us, either up front or via the the taxes we pay to keep Water Authority, councils etc going as always, as before, as forever.

John,
That’s exactly what it is.
They do it every time.
Leak the idea and see what the reaction is.
Bottom line is they haven’t got a clue.

They need to cut back on their own exuberant salaries, pensions with bloody salaries and un vouched expanses for starters.
Not to mention the millions wasted on non starter projects..

We are actually in the shit here and more and more people are falling below the poverty line ever day..
You tell me how much worse can it get if we default and tell the bond holders where to go and save billions..
Not millions but billions..
Directly or in directly we are paying these debts .
So tell the family that can barley put food on the table not to mention getting chucked out on the street for mortgage default that it could be worse..

Like FF before them FG are ignoring the writing in the wall..
People’s lives are collapsing around them..

Sure why not get a third government JET.
It will give the impression that all is well .
ENDA stop sending signals that all is hunky dory because while you keep burying your head in the sand and giving that impression then we WILL be expected to pay this debt to “bond holders ”

Wake up and smell the roses..

Don’t forget having to run your taps for half an hour after a break in supply until it runs clear. You’ll also be charged for this.

In our apartment we have to run the hot water tap for 2-3 minuts befoe hot water comes through the hot tap. Guess we’ll be using our “free” limit watching water going down the plug hole.

You’d boil a kettle quicker….just sayin.

@ Rodney, you could always collect the water you run while waiting for hot water to come through and use that for something else. ;-)

And I will too Francis Devenney it was our hard work that got us where we are nit freebies not being born into rich families I will meet you in Jail And I presume there ate many many more do feel the same

As all our mothers said to us when we were kids – if all your friends jump off a cliff would you do it too. The governments argument is stupid and childish. It doesnt rain 250 days a year in other countries.

I had the biggest piece off cheap plastic meter put in against my wishes. Don’t know if its guaranteed and how long for,and who is responsible for replacing it if there’s a fault . who calibratered it . LOTS OF QUESTIONS MUST BE ASKED , LIKE WHO’S GOING TO PAY BECAUSE I’M NOT.

Colm
about 150 million of our taxes goes to pay the salaries and pensions of all current and previous members of the Dail and Seanad.

But Sean we are already paying for water and ALL services already as we already pay for everything at least twice already here and this shower want us to pay for it all again No NO NO more is going to the bottomless pit of the banks and the UNSECURED BONDHOLDERS

Oh yeah, I mean it wouldn’t have *anything* to do with the little matter of the annual €16bn difference between taxes and spending. Sure if politicians worked for free that gap would be closed overnight right? Oh wait – they cost us €107m in 2010 (source Oireachtas Annual Report 2010).

We love Enda…the arselick. And Eamonn is not far behind (literally)…

I love my Mercedes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

simple matter of placing the meter on the mains pipe that enters your apartment, the majority of lost water goes from the pipes before it enters a building

Ha Ha the joke is the the water systems in Ireland. Most of the time they are either polutted or in the cold – fail to work. And to top it off – there is water lekage throughout the system. In a country that rains all the time, we are now being told we have to pay for this priveledge.!!!

There will be an annual water charge for apartments irregardless of how much water is used.

I hate this argument. If it’s so easy why don’t you get it from the rivers and lakes then? Go off and do that and you won’t need any meter at all.

@ P Wurple, I said I’ll not pay for a meter. If I waste water excessively I expect to pay for it. And sometimes I feel it might be safer to take the water direct from the river. Stop trying to stir shit. I’ll pay for the water if it’s safe to use. but I repeat, I will not pay for a meter

I voted no as well Diarmuid. Paying for meters is daft. I completely agree. Nothing surprises me with that shower of idiots in the dail, but I seriously doubt even they would try to swing this one.

It’s this statement I have a problem with…
“a pretty wet county, plenty of rivers, lakes and rainfal”
That has nothing whatsoever to do with water coming into your house and you should surely know that. It winds me up something rotten when people go on about water falling from the sky being the same as water pumped to their taps.

My argument is not about getting the water to my house, it’s the shite quality. There are desalination units and waste water recycling facilities that make water more potable than the shite that comes out of my taps, and my water comes from an already relatively clean source, it’s this that I have a problem with, and the payment for a meter. If i could tap a well here I would, but then again I’d have to pay a lot for that right too.

Yup a private well wouldn’t be free. I have a baby as well. We don’t drink the water either. Different reason probably. Ours isn’t hard, but it reeks of clorine half the time. We do take showers, bath the smallie, flush our toilet and it goes in the washing machine. I’ve been to some fairly poverty stricken places, I consider the ability to have disease-free water pumped to my house be a massive luxury. There is no way it’s the same as going down the river scooping it out.

I agree the payment for a meter is madness. We don’t pay for ESB meter, gas meter, petrol pumps. I actually don’t think they will do this. It would be utter craziness and the media coverage seems to be based on a FF soundbite saying it’s a bad idea, rather than anyone saying it will happen.

Water is not a luxury its a necessity. The fact that people in poor countries have not got access to safe drinking water has no bearing on this argument.

Newly built houses should already have meters on the mains coming in, so are they now telling us that perfectly good meters have to be replaced?

Also given our governments inability to find the best price for anything is it any wonder the cost of meters is being outrageous.

We also need to look at our local government while the wasters elected to the Dail are grossly over paid our local ones are worse.

Irish people are willing to put up with anything. As shown by the number who paid the household charge. Let’s see how high the taxes can go!

Glad to hear you make your tea with seawater and flush your loo with rainwater. Did you build the pumping system yourself and power it with the wind coming out of your arse, or are you bringing it inside the house in a bucket every day?

Pwurple …. are you on a retainer or do you not understand I have paid tax for 40 years ….or maybe all money and no brains

Delighted to see your insights on how our free water falling from the sky can be pumped into the houses by the fairies who work for free. Very enlightened system altogether. Looking forward to my tax reduction! Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.

Give up now Barry.

The Wurple lass is a Yes Man

By the way, I voted no on this.

Paying for meters is pure daftness.. It will be built into the charge if it needs to be done at all.

It’s the moronic ‘but it falls from the sky’ that gets my goat up.

I don’t want to be out gathering water from the sky to have my shower or flush my loo. To those who do want that, go ahead and do that and stop bothering the rest of us.

The cost of creating potable water is a lot, no doubts about that.

We currently allow over 40% of it to be wasted thru leakage.

However, this is double taxation again.
Re. meter installation, what a fookin joke.
The question of cost does not arise for me
as i wont be engaging with the gov at all with this,
in the same way as the household charge.

@P Wurple: We already pay for water collection and treatment through our very high income taxes.

And it does fall from the sky – unlike in many of the other countries that people are citing as “good examples” we have no shortage of untreated water. We do have leaky pipes that somehow were not considered a priority during the boom, so we pay for expensive water treatment only to see large quantities leak away.

Exempted? Well as residential properties of minister of states are exempt from House Hold Chargers you can probably guess who will be exempt from this!

I agree Nigel but we all know that it won’t happen.

like yourself?

@lisa. Attend you’re local anti household and water charge meetings/protest. Tell you’re friends, neighbours and colleagues to attend aswell. Get out and show the government that you don’t want this charge and won’t pay it.

Just like you are doing Lisa were you at Galwsy protest on Saturday or Dublin at the boxing stadium or at the Convention Centre at the F.G Ard Fheis I am betting you were at home sitting at your laptop Good girl but while your tapping away at your keypad are you emailing any of the public representatives ??????
And before you ask I have and I have done quite a few times along with phone calls and along with taking to the streets with thousands if people across the Country

I thought we were already paying that? ;)

I somehow doubt Siemens were going to lend it for free. The government intend to set up Irish Water as a new semi-state, taking responsibility for water off the councils. I’d imagine Siemens wanted shares in Irish Water or something similar in return.

The country is effectively bankrupt we cannot afford to reject ANY scheme that would lighten the financial load for people.

they will be made in china, the opportunity is in the importation

The idea is that we get better water if it’s paid for. Our water isn’t up to standard but the reason being is because it’s “free”.

Are the other side of the dail much better Declan don’t think so what did we expect when voted in fine Gael and labour a bed of roses easy to oppose everything in opposition see if the lefties would do better don’t think they would money has to come from somewhere would love to know where they will get the money there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow

Seeing as FG/Lab are in essence continuing the policies of FF,
in particular the socialisation of private banking debt,
surely this qualifies them as irelands biggest socialists, no?

I think rental properties will have to pay for water. It is a utility bill and no way someone else (landlord private or council) are going to pick up the tab

Heehee, ur in a right mood today. Hope ur feeling better now that monday is nearly over. ;)

I will happily pay for any excessive water I waste above an amount that I should be entitled to in a free wet country. but let them install the meter without me paying for it. When I buy petrol I don’t have to buy the pump.

If people were to pay for their waste water they would be complaining about that too, we are probably the only country at least in Europe who has no charge on water to domestic users. It’s ridiculous, in the future we should be making money selling our water like oil, but we waste it away running taps like there’s no tomorrow in this “free wet country” Diarmuid. We waste more water than other countries in the EU due to no tariffs or charges on our water, so we won’t be staying a wet country for as long as you think. Fair enough maybe we shouldn’t have to pay for the installation of the meter but we should most defnintely be paying for the water we use.

We shouldn’t pay for the water that should be a basic right, let them install the meters at their cost, allow everyone a set amount per person in the household, and then charge for whatever is used in excess of this allowance (wasted), it would be fair, and stop a lot of waste in the process. We pay for he service of having water, let the wasters pay for the excessive use.

We already pay for our water Niamh, always have, through direct and indirect taxation. The government are thieving this money to pay wealthy peoples gambling debts and expecting us to hand it over a second time. And theres far more water wasted through leaky council pipes then people leaving taps running.

People have to realise that they won’t be charged for “water”. People are saying we are a wet.country, an island etc. That is true but you can’t drink it or use it to wash yourself or clothes etc. We will be charged for treated water and there is a cost for treatment.

And whose being paying for it up till now Eugene? This BS notion that we have received water for free up till now is a joke.

Too Trueleft. The problem is no one really had been paying into it. We get the water treated but there is leaks in the system, victorian technology and pipes etc. We need the system updated and yes it should have been done in the “boom” but it wasn’t so do we let it get worse than what it already is. I am not a fan of paying more but we have to fix this country from its politics to its infrastructure asap

@Eugene: nobody was paying for it? Imagine that. Silly me, I thought I paid for water through my income taxes.

Sure I don’t why you and Niamh would need any water with all that kool-aid you’re drinking.

@Censored. I honestly doubt you are paying for water through your income tax. Think about what you get for your taxes and you will realise you probably get more for your taxes than you contribute but then you may contribute a huge amount in tax. Education for you and your children (if you have any), healthcare etc are heavily subsidised in this country let alone other public services we get as part of our taxes.

Yes the bulk of it was paid from tax revenues, but lets face it guys that needs to go elsewhere like it should have in the first place. As I said before maybe paying for the meter is not a good idea but paying for your water just makes sense. It needs to be done.
It was the same with the bin taxes that everyone kicked up about, we need to put our waste somewhere and start recycling properly…don’t get me wrong I’m no tree hugger. I just know that in the future it will be the government that will be blamed (by the same people) for the water shortages or waste pollution in our soil.

water, the most basic necessity of life and our bodies are made mostly of this. What is it with those doolalley dehydrated hypocrites who one hand are demanding that we allow someone to enter our private domain to install and pay for something that we do not want saying it is the law, but if we lose our homes, possessions or worse as a result of heavy rains then this is excused as an act of god. All water is free. If a meter were to be paid for by me then as with anything that i purchase will decide what to do with it. However….I have absolutely no intention of paying the household tax or any other taxes on a property that i have spent enough on and continue to do so on general maintenance most of which i do myself to save money. Its about time that the government got into reality land where we small people cannot pay any more than we do already while they sip guinness or champagne.

what makes us so special is the huge cost of living here and the third world services we pay through the nose for, is that special enough for you?

I’m sick to the back teeth with the “Other countries do it” argument. Other countries have Child laboure, Female mutelation, execution of Minors so we should have these to? It’s not a valid argument.

Itchy, think I read somewhere that circa 60% of the water is lost in the Dublin system before it gets to the tap. Maybe the government should look to solving that before imposing more charges on house holds. BTW last time I checked we were paying for the water via tax ect.

Agreed! “Other Countries”, have free medical care, free education, road tax money ring fenced to actually maintain roads. I could go on here but ye all get the drift.

Wouldn’t the noble issue of water conservation be better served by repairing the decrepit and leaky water pipe system in place? And don’t tell me that the funds raised from this tax will go towards doing just that, the dogs on the street know what this money is intended to fund…. Evidence shows that water usage in cities that have meters does not reduce with their introduction. So much drinkable water is wasted every year because of leakage from mains etc. I have no doubt that the Irish people would have no problem at all paying for services that were well managed, efficient and accessible. Instead we are left with a terminally ill health system, a bankrupt education system and if this brown tongued government has its way a wasteful and extortionate water meter system that does NOT do what it says on the tin. Wake up and smell the murk, we are being pissed on and told it’s raining.

The reason so much treated water is wasted every year is nothing to do with this system not being in place. Its because we have an antiquated water system across most of the entire system. We already pay for our water, its just through a central taxation system. If you want to pay for your water, then there is nothing stopping you sending a cheque into the revenue office every month.
No? I didnt think so.

@francis… So we’re right and every other country is wrong? Get over yourselves, I’m living in oz now, we pay car rego, stamp duty at 10 % plus rates of $900 per annum, water is metered, pay superannuation, a Medicare levy or private health insurance… Not saying it isn’t tough, my dad lives of the pension and my brother has gone to uni in the uk to retrain… But if you wants services you’ll have to pay for them AND the debts…

so ur livin in Oz and tellin us to get over ourselves??

entitled to ur opinion, but you might get more respect for it
if you were living here and paying taxes etc HERE and NOW

@Cavanbythesea. We are already paying for our services it’s what PRSI the USC and the Service charge (the clue is in the name) We also pay all VRT, VAT, PAYE road tax, Stamp Duty, and a host of others. This is not about wanting something for free it’s about not being charged 3 and 4 times for the same thing. And the debts are simply not ours, We generate more than enough to run the country and to invest in economic groweth if we wern’t pissing it down the Troika drain. And if the function of goverment is to protect and provide for it’s citizens then yes a lot of countries have got it wrong.

Obviously you’re not struggling enough if you have NO PROBLEM paying and as for treated water being wasted,I think it’s more a case of ALL the water that is being lost because of an old and broken pipe system which the governments(all of them) refuse to replace.This is where the money needs to be spent,

@ ITCHY BRAIN. WE are already paying for it all and have been for ever throughout taxes plus we are PRSI + USC for our public medical and we still have to a €100 for any A+E visit We are just too Fcuking soft here

is that you big phil

Hey folks,

Thank you for the wonderful comments,

I do believe this whole centralised taxation system is going to be segregated up when this happens. We will no longer be paying for water through the centralised taxation system but through this method and those those who consume more will pay more, which is good (but some of you are still going to moan).
This is much better than everyone paying the same. At the moment people waste water and we all pay for it without realising it.

The leaking pipes is another issue that will be solved when people start working together and stop blaming others. We need to be more recilient! Negativity is so rampant in this country, its absolutly digusting.

I don’t think those who have their own wells should pay, I certainly would not. Thats a different side to this argument

The government have said that they cannot afford the installation of water meters, but they want to get this show on the road, catch up with the rest of Europe. I would respect that until they are proven to be lying. I advocate this movement and those that moan about this are responsible for this country being so backward when it comes to having a efficient sustainable infrastructure.
There are also excellent job prospects for the Irish here!

Thank you

And there you go with your underhanded insults again EMD. Had you consulted your crystal balls before logging on, you could have saved yourself the hassle of having to read all these uninformed comments posted by the ignorant lefty scroungers, as you like to call us.

As Martin Luther King once said –

“Cowardice asks the question: Is it safe?
Expediency asks the question: Is it politic?
Vanity asks the question: Is it popular?

But conscience asks the question: Is it right?

And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic nor popular – but one must take it simply because it is right.”

And that is why I will continue to say NO to the overpaid gombeens in the Dail – enough is enough. Maybe EMD you should take a leaf out of this noble mans book.

we`ve always paid for our water truogh our taxes how many times do people need to be told this

should your question not read ..who should pay for it twice !!!!!

FG helping our country by digging its grave? Cop on.

we`ve always paid for our water through our taxes so why should we pay through the metres as well and i`ll spell however i feel like spelling if u cant read it tough u must be a fg fan ya big flute

it would be nice if you could/would pay attention to what people are saying as opposed to how they are saying it. But it seems you don’t have that kind of grace.

Get a grip

@ cavan,, this discussion is not about whether we should pay for water or not, it’s about whether or not we should have to pay for the meters to measure our water consumption. two different things in case you haven’t noticed.