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water bill

'I don't think the Government knows how serious this is'

Sinn Féin has hit out at Government for allowing the Water Services Bill to be signed into law.

A SENATOR OPPOSED to the signing of the Water Services Bill has said the Government in unaware of how serious the situation is.

Sinn Féin’s David Cullinane was one of the 50 TDs and Senators who put their names to petitions calling for President Michael D Higgins to refer the Bill to the Council of State under Article 26 of the Constitution.

Previous suggestions that Higgins would be able to call a referendum on the legislation were dismissed as the Bill had already passed through both the Dáil and the Seanad.

The signing of the Bill yesterday prompted protests outside Áras an Uachtaráin.

“The Government is not listening and I do not think they don’t understand quite how serious this situation is,” Senator Cullinane said in a statement yesterday.

Sinn Féin had asked that the President refer the legislation to the Council of State as we had severe reservations as to its constitutionality.

“Multiple mass mobilisations in the streets have shown that the Irish people do not accept these charges at a fundamental level and these mobilisations will continue in the New Year.”

He said that Sinn Féin will reverse the charges if elected to government.

Read: Protesters gather at Áras an Uachtaráin as water charges signed into law >

More: President Michael D Higgins has signed the Water Services Bill >

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