Sinn Fein Introduces Water Charges In the North!

[Donagh]

Talkin sh*te im afraid, she rents it from the housing executive.

As I said, she doesn't get a rates bill from the Council. If the HE want to fool her into thinking she's getting something for nothing that between her and them.

[A Quinn Martin Production]

Nobody gets a rates bill from the Council

[Balboa]

Its not a bill as such, it is included in the breakdown of her rent. So i would imagine it is the yearly rates bill divided by 12.

[Donagh]

Nobody gets a rates bill from the Council

Well if you want to be pedantic about it, okay the Council sets the rate and it's collected by some underworked civil service employee in between his holidays and sick days.

[his holiness nb]

Lads to suggest this isnt Sinn Fein bashing is silly, look at the thread title ffs!

Did they bring it in on their own?

[A Quinn Martin Production]

Councils set the district rate only.  Rates are collected by the Rate Collection Agency which is part of the Dept of Finance & Personnel headed up by Robbo, so Peter Punt gets all the rate money and then he divvies it up.  Housing Executive tenants do pay rates otherwise they wouldn't be eligible for rate relief.

[Gaoth Dobhair Abu]

Deiseach, did you bother to read my post or just that one line! 

Yes, I read the post, and your defence of water charges is not the point. The Shinners said they would not introduce water charges, and they have. It may make perfect sense, but you can't seriously expect SF's political opponents to pass up on an opportunity to have a pop at them, can you?

I wasn't defending the water charges, but stating that IMO their inevitable arrival, your response was the usual Shinner bashing prevalent on this board. BTW you are entitled to "have a pop" but as I was also trying to say, it could have been any of the parties in the executive making this decision - it is inevitable that the charges will come in.

[deiseach]

I wasn't defending the water charges, but stating that IMO their inevitable arrival, your response was the usual Shinner bashing prevalent on this board. BTW you are entitled to "have a pop" but as I was also trying to say, it could have been any of the parties in the executive making this decision - it is inevitable that the charges will come in.

*sigh* If it was inevitable, why did Sinn Fein campaign on the promise of preventing it? Might as well campaign on holding back the tide. I make no apologies for the 'usual Shinner bashing'. It's this brittleness in the face of proper parish pump politics that contributed to SF's dire performance in recent general election. Long may it continue

[Gaoth Dobhair Abu]

FFS deiseach if your tired go to bed - 

The reason SF campaigned against it was the same as the rest of the parties - popular support, it would have been political suicise for any of the parties to have been pro water charges before the election (thought that was pretty obvious!).

As for your continued reference to SF's performance in the recent general election, as you well know it came down to a dogfight between the "big two" FF & FG, the Shinners made alot of schoolboy mistakes, publically over estimating possible gains, not thought out (and in some cases, lack of) economic policies, poor media performances, putting MaryLou in Dublin Central etc, etc, etc.. (yes it's quite a long list ). But lessons will be learnt by the SF backroom team and the next campaign will be a better fought and thought out one.

[deiseach]

The reason SF campaigned against it was the same as the rest of the parties - popular support, it would have been political suicise for any of the parties to have been pro water charges before the election (thought that was pretty obvious!).

Are you telling me SF are JUST LIKE EVERY OTHER POLITICAL PARTY? Whatever happened to breaking the mould, an end to the tired old politics of division blah blah blah

As for your continued reference to SF's performance in the recent general election, as you well know it came down to a dogfight between the "big two" FF & FG, the Shinners made alot of schoolboy mistakes, publically over estimating possible gains, not thought out (and in some cases, lack of) economic policies, poor media performances, putting MaryLou in Dublin Central etc, etc, etc.. (yes it's quite a long list ). But lessons will be learnt by the SF backroom team and the next campaign will be a better fought and thought out one.

So apart from attempting to foist a first-past-the-post rationale on a PR-STV system - people could vote for SF and transfer to one of the big two, they just chose not to vote for SF; the idea that you had to vote tactically like you might have to do to get rid of Willie Thompson is complete bunkum - you agree with me that SF's performance was dire.

[Pangurban]

What a senseless,thoughtless, irrational debate. Have you guys not yet realised that our so called politicians are not decision makers, they are merely administrators. The real decision makers reside far from these shores, in the IMF.,Corporate boardrooms, and the european commission. Our guys North and South could not lick a postage stamp without permission. The same is true of all western democracies,outside of the U.S.A. where real power lies. Using the home front as a illustration, would anyone seriously try to explain the difference in social and economic policy between FF and FG or the difference between SF.and the Dup, Tories or Labour. Minor readjustments of the distribution of G.N.P which do not alter the status quo. is all they can and do aspire to. Someone once said that if democracy changed anything, they would abolish it, never was a truer word spoken. Pay no more heed to these minnows and there pretend consultations and discussions, swallow your medicine and like it, its the price you have to pay to live in a materialist,consumer society.

[Bacon]

Maybe the Sinn Fein poster should just be changed to say "Smaller Water Charges! Less of your money down the drain!"

[Hardy]

the usual Shinner bashing prevalent on this board.

Now that is funny. Sometimes this board looks like the online branch of SF. As witness the snapping to attention of the usual suspects when somebody meekly pointed out a piece of shinner hypocrisy. These are the same posters who rant and rail at the perceived corruption of all other political parties in these islands, yet when SF is pointed out as being just the same (with the extra leavening of hypocrisy provided by the contrast with their "breaking the mould" shite) the faithful are out in force to point out "sure it's usual to lie to get elected" and whinging about SF bashing.

In the old days it was depressing and despair-inducing. Now that the spawgs are under the table and the noses in the trough, it's just funny.

[lynchbhoy]

The EU Water Framework Directive means that everyone in the EU will (eventually) have to pay for thier mains water - it's a bit disingenuous to be campaigning against water charges.

yeah, I've heard talks have started down here about water charges too....

it was only a matter of time..

we have serious problems down south with the eventual water shortages plus the natioal grid not being able to supply enough electricity , this christmas meant to be the worst ever in terms of demand and (no) supply (in some areas)