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Mairéad | all galleries >> Galleries >> 2014 > Lots of Free Water
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01-Nov-2014

Lots of Free Water

Thousands of people braved the rain in Dundalk to join the nationwide protests against the introduction of water charges.
People are angry that they are facing another tax, especially as many are still struggling as a result of the recession.
They are angry with politicians, such as the nitwit who commented that 'water doesn't fall out of the sky'.
Today's weather shows that it does fall out of the skies and while people accept that there is a cost to getting it to their homes,
they feel they are already paying more than enough taxes, some of which are supposed to cover the cost of such services.

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exzim07-Nov-2014 21:15
I'd guess it isn't so much a protest against paying for water as it is a protest against tax money that they consider is being wasted. And certainly there isn't a nation in the EU where this hasn't been the case in recent years.
sue anne05-Nov-2014 02:04
Interesting story and good capture of the people. V
Karen Stuebing03-Nov-2014 21:52
Great journalistic shot to show how ludicrous charging for water is. Perfect weather for this protest. V.
Johnny JAG02-Nov-2014 17:43
So ironic
John Reynolds LRPS02-Nov-2014 11:37
You have captured the mood of the weather and the people very nicely. V.
Stephanie02-Nov-2014 11:20
An interesting and thought provoking image and narrative. Unfortunately there is no such thing as a free lunch and I agree with Alan; people need to pay for consumption. That being said, our governments are looking for more and more ways to tax the citizens as they line their pockets with our hard-earned currency.
Yvonne02-Nov-2014 10:15
Good to see such a good turn-up even in the rain! Unfortunately water comes at a price
where I live, and we are very short of it most years, but I rather like your photo... v
Alan K02-Nov-2014 08:39
Eeeeh... I'm not sure that I can totally sympathise on this one. We've pretty much always had water rates here. ("Pretty much" = "since we actually HAD modern infrastructure".) The cost of supplying water has always been (just like other utilities such as gas, electricity and telecoms) covered not by general taxation but rather by the user contracting with a supplier who charges a fee for the service plus the per unit cost per consumption. (Until relatively recently the electricity and telecoms at least were government owned. Water still is but give it time, give it time...) Although the contract is generally a commercial one there is a degree of cross-subsidisation for more remote areas (enforced by government imposed "customer service obligations"), such that those areas don't necessarily bear the full cost of supplying the infrastructure.
Part of the problem of NOT having separate charges for water is that water tends to then be regarded as "free". Consequently there is no reason to try to limit its consumption. This is of course a substantially greater problem for the driest continent on earth than it is for Ireland (as this photo attests to). But even with a country like Ireland a man-made bloat of the fresh water cycle is not likely to be environmentally beneficial, and the desire to save a few bucks can be a powerful incentive. I'm aware of the danger of it hitting larger families harder (since they still clearly need to consume a significant amount of water for washing and hygiene) and a compensating tax rebate would probably be appropriate... but in the long term putting a cost on the consumption of water may turn out to be a blessing in disguise.
Not, as your PADs show, you're likely to run out of it soon.
Helen Betts02-Nov-2014 06:45
Excellent photojournalistic capture, Margaret. Looks like that pol should think before he speaks. V.
larose forest photos02-Nov-2014 00:47
A very evocative shot, showing that people care enough to get out and protest. V
laine01-Nov-2014 22:44
oh dear...at least there is a little colour !!
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