Cllr John McGahon addressing protesters outside County Hall this morning. Picture: LMFM
Louth County Council has passed a motion calling on the government to scrap the water charges.
The vote was called for at this morning’s meeting at County Hall following a Sinn Féin motion.
Earlier in the session a Green Party motion was also passed, calling for a referendum to ensure water services aren’t privatised.
Fine Gael and Labour councillors, some of whom were abesent, were the only objectors to the Sinn Féin vote while only Fine Gael’s councillors opposed the Green Party motion.
Mayor of Drogheda, Kevin Callan, who stepped down from Fine Gael over the handling of the water charges situation recently, voted in favour of the motion.
A protest took place outside the council offices on the St Alphonsus Road prior to the meeting with around 75 in attendance.
Cllr John McGahon spoke to the crowd saying he sympathised with them but that investment in our water system was needed.
He said: “The point has been made that we have been paying water for the last 30 years but over the last 30 years we have seen that 49% of our water has been leaked, we have seen 20,000 people on boil water notices and it has been the fault of all governments, including my own, not to invest in the water system and that’s what Fine Gael are doing now.”
He said that the currently system was “not fit for purpose” and added that “whether people like it or not we are trying to make it as fair and as equitable as possible.”
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