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Independentie

News [1]
Opinion [2]
Business [3]
Sport [4]
Life [5]
Style [7]
Entertainment [8]
Travel [9]

Menu Sections

Irish Water Crisis

April 2017

Explainer: Rejoice! The water war is over... but what happens next?

So, the politicians have struck a deal?

March 2017

Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government Simon Coveney. Photo: Steve Humphreys

Revenue should refund Irish Water customers, Fianna Fáil insists

Fianna Fáil has called for the Revenue Commissioners to be tasked with refunding Irish Water customers who paid their bills over the last two years.

February 2017

'Excessive water usage charge' among key proposals in water committee draft document

The Water Charges debate has created a political storm.

December 2016

Under pressure: Housing Minister Simon Coveney. Photo:Tom Burke

'No refund for water billpayers' - Coveney says it would set ‘dangerous precedent’

Housing Minister Simon Coveney is coming under massive pressure to refund almost one million householders who paid water charges despite warning it would set "a dangerous precedent".

Anti-Austerity Alliance and People Before Profit TDS (l-r) Gino Kenny, Paul Murphy, Brid Smith, Mick Barry and Richard Boyd-Barrett meet the media outside Leinster House to respond to the Expert Commission on Water Charges report. Photo: Tom Burke

Protesters get under orders to halt water 'Trojan horse'

Protesters plan to organise a series of marches from February ahead of a Dáil vote on the future of water charges.

The EIB says it is ready to fund water upgrades in Ireland – once the Government decides what to do about charges. Stock Image

EIB funding in the pipeline to improve Irish supply network

The European Investment Bank says it is ready to fund water upgrades in Ireland - once the Government decides what to do about charges.

November 2016

'Who doesn’t want clean and safe drinking water, and beaches where we can swim?' Photo: James Connolly

Premium

Paul Melia: Europe will ultimately decide if charges are gone for good

Six years after Ireland agreed to introduce water charges and we're back to square one. We still don't know how to fund upgrades and day-to-day operations. We have yet to discover exactly how much water we consume on a daily basis and all the time we continue to discharge raw sewage into our bathing waters.

Fianna Fáil's Barry Cowen. Photo: Tom Burke

Fianna Fáil's stance has been vindicated, says Cowen

Fianna Fáil's Barry Cowen said the report of the Expert Commission on water vindicated his party's stance and meant charges were "dead and won't be returning".

'If only Phil Hogan had thought of that back in 2014 when he introduced a weary nation to the concept of water charges.' Photo: Collins Courts

Premium

Kevin Doyle: This amounts to a 'free allowance' - but can politicians finally move on?

After all the protests and political manoeuvrings, it seems the answer all along was simply to give people a very generous free allowance.

October 2016

Thousands of small and medium-sized businesses face hikes in their water bills. (Stock photo)

Firms face water bill hikes under 'harmonised' system

Thousands of small and medium-sized businesses face hikes in their water bills when the regulator introduces a "harmonised" system of charges in just over a year.

Sinn Féin: 'Thousands of water meters will be left to rust if charges abolished'

THOUSANDS of water meters installed by Irish Water would remain in place and be left to rust if charges were abolished, Sinn Féin has admitted.

September 2016

'Leave the taps on and we'll foot the bill' - Taoiseach slams Fianna Fáil's water plans

TAOISEACH Enda Kenny said that under Fianna Fáil's water policy "everybody could leave their taps on" and the taxpayer would be expected to foot the bill.

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin. Picture: Arthur Carron

Micheál Martin: Sinn Féin 'play-acting on water charges' and we won't support motion to abolish

FIANNA Fáil won't be supporting Sinn Féin's Dáil motion to abolish water charges, Micheál Martin has said, describing the rival party's move as "play-acting".

Fianna Fail's environment spokesman Barry Cowen. Pic Tom Burke

FF joined by Sinn Féin, AAA/PBP in call to abolish water charges

Fianna Fáil has been joined by Sinn Féin and the Anti-Austerity Alliance/People before Profit in calling for water charges to be abolished and households to be refunded bills that they have already paid.

July 2016

Cryptosporidium outbreak cost €19m

A Cryptosporidium outbreak that resulted in 120,000 people being forced to boil their water for five months cost €19m, a new study shows.

General manager Dan Murphy and Garry Walsh, Hodson Bay Group commercial director, at the Galway Bay Hotel.
Photo: Andrew Downes

'We quickly put a filtration system in place, ensuring we saw no drop-off in bookings'

As the cryptosporidium outbreak took hold in Galway in 2007, one of the industries hardest hit was the hospitality sector which bore a cost of €50,000 per day.

Thousands of litres of water are being lost daily due to leaks

Some households use six times more water than average

Some households are consuming six times as much water as the national average, new data shows.

Housing Minister Simon Coveney has already indicated that he sees no way of abandoning water charges completely. Photo: Gareth Chaney Collins

Water bills bring in just a quarter of expected income after new freeze

Irish Water collected just over a quarter of what it expected as floods of householders failed to pay their water bills in the wake of the Government's decision to suspend charges.

There has been a huge drop off in the number of people paying bills (stock photo)

Irish Water payments almost halved in recent months

Irish Water payments almost halved in the last billing cycle after the Government announced the charges would be suspended for nine months.

'Repay every cent of our water bills,' voters urge

An overwhelming majority want the Government to repay those who paid their water bills if charges are ultimately abolished, according a Sunday Independent/Millward Brown opinion poll.

Former Independent senator Joe O’Toole has come under fire for remarks he made in a series of media interviews. Photo: Tom Burke

Water review chief faces calls to quit just days after his new appointment

The chairman of the independent commission set up to consider water charges is facing mount calls to resign - just days after being handed the post.

Former senator Joe O’Toole Picture: Tom Burke

Fianna Fáil calls for chair of water commission to consider his position after media remarks

Fianna Fáil has called on the chairman of the Independent Commission set up to examine the future of water charges to consider his position.

The under-fire semi-state company, which has been ravaged by controversy since its establishment, defended the spending and said the figure accounted for 3,641 work-related trips

Irish Water's €1m bill for travel

Irish Water staff racked up a bill of nearly €1m last year on planes, trains and automobiles, the Sunday Independent can reveal.