Westmeath County Council tenant's details have been transferred to Irish Water without their consent.

Sinn Fein Councillor Paul Hogan described this transfer of information as a breach of equality and privacy of social housing tenants. This breach of information has occurred just days before a Sinn Féin motion to request Westmeath County Council not to transfer tenant's details to Irish Water.

 “I can confirm that the Chief Executive, without informing the elected representatives or the tenants involved, has transferred tenant’s details to Irish Water for domestic water charges. I believe this is a social injustice to our housing tenants and is a breach of their equality and privacy. The Council has also impeded on the tenant’s individual power and reserve to decide for themselves whether to register with Irish Water or not," said Cllr Hogan.

“Irish Water asked Westmeath County Council twice in recent weeks to transfer their details to the utility company. The Chief Executive has complied this request without informing the tenants involved or without informing the elected representatives.

“Sinn Fein Councillor Sorca Clarke, had tabled a Sinn Féin motion not to transfer the details and it appears that the Executive wanted to transfer the information before the issue was debated by the elected representatives. I have been consistently requesting the Chief Executive not to transfer the information but my request has obviously fallen on deaf ears.

 “On Saturday, I joined over 80,000 people to march against the unjust imposition of water charges. There is no denying that the majority of people in this state are opposed to water charges.
 
“However, the government has once again resorted to bully-boy tactics and scaremongering with Minister Alan Kelly refusing to rule out deducting water charges from people’s wages and social welfare payments. Officials from his department have also been briefing the media on how such a move would work in practical terms.
 
“I think it is deplorable, particularly from a Labour Party Minister. That the Labour Party now so readily issues the kind of threats that are synonymous with the conservative right shows just how far they have fallen from their stated ideals and objectives.
 
“Such behaviour, both from the Fine Gael/Labour Government and Westmeath County Council amounts to a clear threat to those who may oppose water charges. It will be an extremely stressful thing to hear for those who know that they will not be able to afford the charges.
 
 “Sinn Féin stands with the ordinary people and those who protested in Dublin last weekend. The right to water is one of the most basic of human rights. Sinn Féin in government will abolish these unjust charges.”