On ‘The Floating Voter’ Irish Independent, March 10, 2017 Fine Gael chairman, Martin Heydon, joins Kevin Doyle, Philip Ryan and Niall O’Connor to discuss the week in Irish politics including water charges.

This 15 min. extract was interesting but only out of curiosity rather than learning any pearl of wisdom from this right wing Fine Gael TD.

After his belligerent contributions and occasional faux pas as part of the Fine Gael well drilled squadron that attended the Joint Oireachtas Water Committee on Funding Domestic Water, we get to once again listen to the bravado and seething arrogance of Martin Heydon.

He may well say that after spending months in the Water Committee that he has learnt a great deal but somehow that comment does not hold water. In reality neither he nor Fine Gael have moved on from their time of majority rule in the Dáil when they set up what is now a discredited water policy of metering, full cost recovery and privatisation of Ireland's water resources.

It has been a mighty citizen's feat of knocking the Government off their austerity pedestal. The Irish people, contrary to what Mr Heydon thinks, democratically removed Fine Gael’s mandate at the last General Election especially with regard to Fine Gael's water policy.

The following fact is an amusing eye-opener to Mr Heydon’s ignorance and blasé attitude on the water issue. During the Joint Committee on Domestic Water, after hearing a submission from the much under resourced Public Water Forum, he stated that it was the first time he heard of this body. Kid you not that was Fine Gael Chairman's knowledge. It is all on Oireachtas tape.

Doesn't that just sum up Fine Gael's attitude to citizen awareness around the water controversy? Probably Fine Gael regarded the Public Water Forum as just another EU Water Framework Directive formality and with not much thought, set it up and gave it a budget of €80,000 annually. Now that’s commitment for you.

Sorry there may be short starting delay .

Source: Irish Independent, Mar 9 2017