Workers’ Party councillor Ted Tynan has said that both the government and large sections of the media are completely out of touch with reality if they believe that changes in the management and structures of Irish Water will defuse the mass opposition to water charges, water metering and privatisation of the public water supply.
Cllr. Tynan said that public opposition to Irish Water was on a scale unprecedented in the history of the state and that the 100,000 people who marched on the streets of Dublin a fortnight ago were merely a representative sample of a much bigger number of people nationwide who are totally opposed to water charges.
He said, “This is much, much bigger than the Household Charge debacle, it is substantially bigger than the tax marches of 30 years ago and the aspect of this battle that terrifies the government, the EU and the establishment most is that the campaign is not controlled by individuals who can be deceived or bought off, it is truly a people’s campaign and the people have reached the point of no return, they simply cannot afford not to fight the water charges”.
The Workers’ Party councillor said the government has failed to grasp the reality that they no longer have control of the situation. “They have run out of ideas, they have run out of threats and neither of the two main parties in opposition has convinced people they can be trusted. The non-payment and civil disobedience campaign is winning and will win if people hold their nerve and stand together”, said Cllr. Tynan.