‘Message being sent is that those who pay up are fools’
WIDOW Sheila Deegan has paid her water bill – but believes the message now going out is that anyone who does so is a fool.
The retired 66-year-old, from Clontarf, Dublin, wrote to Environment Minister Alan Kelly yesterday as she believes people need clarity over the charge. Ms Deegan – who has three children, two of whom live abroad – said: ‘I think the Government need to make a statement about this to put people out of their indecision.
‘I think the wrong message is being sent out by the Government; the message is those people who pay the charges are sort of fools really, because the people who don’t pay will not be followed up, and it is a legitimate charge.’
Ms Deegan – who worked in Aer Lingus for 23 years and with the Christian Brothers for six years prior to her retirement – said she never believed the water charge was fair, as a homeowner with a swimming pool could end up paying the same as someone with a small apartment.
She added: ‘I think the wrong message is being sent out. Do we pay our TV licence now? What next? What’s the next charge that will come up, that some people will pay and others won’t, and there are no sanctions for those that do not pay?
‘It’s a disorganised society, it’s a society that the Government seems to have lost their control of, and no-one knows what’s going to happen.
‘The message now is you don’t actually have to abide by the law. The politicians are all rowing back all of a sudden and they don’t seem to have the courage of their convictions to stick with the decision they made last year.
‘The majority of people are paying and people don’t seem to see that.’
In her letter to Minister Kelly, she asked if people’s money would be refunded if the water charges are abolished, and also said it would send out ‘a very, very damaging message to common justice’ if people who are paying their dues to society come out second best in this scenario.
Ms Deegan said: ‘The silent majority are ourselves and we are the majority, so what makes non-payers think that the majority can’t be right?’
She added: ‘Nobody knows at the moment what is going to happen.’