Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Under pressure. Unfortunately, there is not enough pressure on and that is the reality of this situation. I remember being in Carrick-on-Shannon three years ago when the water charge protests were going on. There were a couple of thousand people there, the vast majority of whom were on group schemes in Leitrim. While they were protesting about Irish Water, they were also protesting about SNAs being taken out of schools, about relatives who were unable to get hospital appointments and against all the austerity measures the Government had introduced over many years. They were really protesting about the right-wing conservative attitude of the two main parties which wanted to bring us down a road where people pay their taxes for services and then have to take out their chequebooks and pay again. That is the reality of what people have protested about. That is the symbolism that the water charge protest was. There is another symbolism coming up in the next couple of days. If the two parties of the right in this Chamber come together and create a fudge on Irish Water, it will be clear that nothing has changed. The symbolism will be clear that the old ways of the conservative past will be brought back again. That is what people are watching out there. They are watching to see exactly what will happen. Will the change they voted for on 26 February come into being or not? That is really what the water charges issue is about. If one wants to show the people that one is going to listen to them, one must abolish Irish Water and extinguish water charges.

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