Revenue could be deployed to target water charge boycotters, warns Kelly

Revenue could be brought in to target a mass boycott of water charges, Environment Minister Alan Kelly has signalled.

The minister refused to rule out ordering the tax authorities to take action, despite the fact that the water levy is a service charge, as campaigners threatened a nationwide show of civil disobedience by ignoring the first bills when they land at the end of January.

Speaking as he toured a waste water processing plant in Ringsend, Dublin, intended to highlight the need for modernisation of the supply network, Mr Kelly insisted non-payers would not be able to escape the charges.

Pressed on whether the Government would attempt to pressure people by handing collection over to Revenue, Mr Kelly said: “All issues are being discussed in relation to that at the moment and I’m not going to breach confidentiality. I’m not ruling it in or out but issues like that are broader than my own ministerial area.”

Anti-charge campaigners have linked the possible intervention of Revenue with the requirement for people to provide their PPS numbers to Irish Water.

The environment minister insisted there was nothing to fear from handing over PPS numbers and the Government would not back-track on this demand.

“To get the allowances and ensure that allowances are given out, the PPS route was the route that was chosen and there are no plans to change that,” he said.

Mr Kelly said PPS numbers were needed for the benefit of customers because they ensured “those allowances are going to the right people and aren’t being double claimed or claimed by the wrong people.”

The minster said he was unsure whether a referendum would be needed to enshrine the utility in public ownership.

Mr Kelly said that he “would not tolerate” the privatisation of Irish Water.

“I don’t have an ideological issue with this, but I can see the problems. If you have a referendum on Irish Water are you going to have one on CIÉ? Are you going to have a referendum on ESB? I could list off another 30 things, where does it stop?”

Mr Kelly would not be drawn on the specifics of how much people would be expected to pay for water under revamped plans set to be announced next week in the wake of mass nationwide protests.