Water stealth tax

Great letter in today’s Irish Times.

The high cost of water

Sir,

How many people does it take to install a water meter? Anyone still reeling from the cost of the drinking water (the supply of which we mistakenly believed we had been paying for all along through central taxation) may be interested to know that – with the arrival of Irish Water – the answer is about 18.

That many appeared in our street today, about half working for contractor GMC-Sierra, the rest with Uisce Eireann logos on their shiny new hi-viz jackets. Most stood around idle while one or two installed meters.

When I asked why so many, an Irish Water woman replied “It’s a trial.”

To all of us still grappling with the astronomical fees paid to “consultants” to set up a body for which there was no need in order to impose higher taxation by stealth – it most certainly is.

Yours, etc,
Graham Stone
Dublin 8