Joe O’Toole resigns after Fianna Fáil demands he depart

The chair of the independent commission on water charges Joe O’Toole has resigned following controversy over his expression of support for the principle of paying for water.

In a brief statement issued on Tuesday afternoon Mr O’Toole said he had planned to remain in the role until “Minister Coveney informed me that the main Opposition party would not co-operate with Government on this and related issues for as long as I remained in the chair”.

“Despite the support of Minister Coveney this is a situation I am not prepared to countenance and therefore I am withdrawing from the position of Chair.”

Mr Toole said he was disappointed to be walking away from the role but said it was “the right thing to do in these circumstances”.

“I am comfortable with the fact that I put my views honestly and transparently on the record. It is regrettable that my straight-talking has caused difficulties for others but in that regard I am unlikely to change anytime soon.”

Mr Toole said he remained “ready to do the State some service” and in the meantime would ponder “the truth of the old adage that a week is a long time in politics”.

Mr O’Toole had been called on to resign by Fianna Fáil and the Anti-Austerity/People Before Profit Alliance over his expression of support for the principle of paying for water.

In media interviews the former Senator had said he believed in the polluter pays principle and insisted water must be paid for.

Fianna Fáil TD Barry Cowen said Mr O’Toole needed to consider his position after his “ill-judged” comments.

He said: “For the commission’s process to enjoy public support, it is essential that those involved approach the question of funding with an open mind.

Responding to the resignation on Tuesday evening, Mr Cowen said “Fianna Fáil takes no pleasure in Joe’s departure but we believe that he has done the right thing in stepping aside.

“The decision of the Chair to pre-empt any examination of the facts and promote his personal view of what should happen next is clearly incompatible with the role he was appointed to.

“We were not consulted on Joe’s appointment, but we did welcome it. He is a man with a strong record of public service. It is Joe’s activities since his appointment that have led to today.

Our hope is that the Government will now move quickly to appoint someone who will approach the question with an open mind and will engage on the question of how we pay for water in an independent and impartial way.”