New umbrella group to hold anti-water charge protest
A new umbrella group opposed to water charges will hold a protest at the Spanish Arch at lunchtime today (Saturday).
The ‘Galway Unites Against Water Charges’ group has rejected the revised charges announced by the Government last week and branded them “a few crumbs from the Fine Gael and Labour table”.
The GUAWC involves anti-water groups from around the city and county, including We Won't Pay, Galway Against Water Charges, Right2Water Galway, Galway Lockout and Glór na Tuaithe (Rural Voice).
A spokesperson for GUAWC said: “The groups have come together to send a clear message to the Government and local TDs that people will not be bought off with the so-called reformed water charge package announced last week. This represents the thin end of the wedge.
"The Government are clearly just looking to get the charges established any way they can, than over time they will implement the full range of costs, meters and privatisation that people have rebelled against in recent weeks.
“The Government’s claim that they have listened to the people and addressed the issues amounts to little more than rhetoric and does very little to address people's real concerns into the future.
"The fight against water charges has nothing to do with people wanting something for nothing. People in this country already pay for water through central taxation, the Government have not made clear what would happen to the €1.2billion that is currently set aside for the provision of water services if direct charges were to come in.
“They have also missed one of the main points of the protests, which was never about free water as such, but about how water is paid for and where the burden is placed.
“Low and middle income people have borne the brunt of the past six years of austerity and are simply not willing to take another hit, water charges are the final straw. The people have risen and will not settle for a few crumbs from the FG and Labour table," the spokesperson said.
Today’s protest takes place at 1pm, and is a prelude to the national demonstration outside Dáil Éireann which takes place on October 10.