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@ISIDEWITHQuestionsEconomy9yrs ago

Should water charges be abolished?

Domestic water charges were introduced in 2015 for Irish homes that are connected to a public water supply or to public wastewater services. Irish Water, the national water utility, administers the water charges. However, the Water Services (Amendment) Act 2016 suspended the issuing of domestic water bills for the second quarter of 2016. It also suspended domestic water charges for 9 months, from 1st July 2016 to 31st March 2017, with no charging or billing of domestic customers during that period. This suspension has been extended for a further 4 months by the Water Services Act (Extension of Suspension of Domestic Water Charges Order 2017).

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Answer Overview

Response rates from 1.2k Mayo voters.

63%
Yes
37%
No

Historical Support

Trend of support over time for each answer from 1.2k Mayo voters.

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Other Popular Answers

Unique answers from Mayo voters whose views went beyond the provided options.

 @B24WB9Qanswered…2yrs2Y

There should be a cap and after that you have to pay but there should be a free amount per household per month.

 @9FX3HB9answered…3yrs3Y

If the fee is going towards replacing the old lead pipes and providing safe and clean water to all homes as this tax functions in other countries, I would happily pay that tax.

 @BDYX3JYanswered…5 days5D

It should be removed for residential properties

 @BDK4LBKanswered…1mo1MO

I feel that water charges should be reduced to be very affordable as it is a basic necessity

 @BDGYPDHanswered…1mo1MO

Charges should directly support water treatment facilities to ensure high quality, continuous supply of water.

 @BDGVC4Nanswered…1mo1MO

When the government can afford to

 @BD4VLVY from Maine  answered…2mos2MO

Yes—household water charges should be abolished and funded through general taxation, with ring-fenced investment in infrastructure, strict oversight, and charges only for excessive use and non-domestic consumption.

 @B76P2TSanswered…9mos9MO

I don't support completely abolishing water charges, but I do think they should be reduced. Water is a basic human need, and the fees should be fair and affordable for everyone.

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Based on 1.2k responses to this question.

These results come from iSideWith's ongoing political issues survey. We collect over a million responses per day, filter out duplicate and multiple submissions, and break the results down by political party, ideology, age, state, and census demographics (income, race, education, household).

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iSideWith. (2026). “Should water charges be abolished?” — Public Opinion Poll Results. Retrieved June 16, 2026, from https://ireland.isidewith.com/poll/3187647824

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