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Council's postage bill would pay home helps 15.10.12

A GROUP opposing austerity measures has criticised Donegal County Council for spending thousands of euro on posting 30,000 Household Charge warning letters - saying the money would be better spent on home helps. Donegal Action Against Austerity also disputed the local authority's claim that some 34,000 people had paid the charge.
DAAA said the number of non-payers was more like 50,000 and it urged the recipients of the warning letters to phone the local authority with their objections.
"It is common knowledge that over 50,000 households have not registered to pay the household tax," said DAAA chairman, Seamus Kee.
"We would ask the 30,000 people who receive these letters to phone Mr (Gary) Martin, director of finance, and make their feelings known and that under no circumstances will we pay this €100 household tax."
DAAA said it had been out on the streets at post offices over the last few weeks handing out leaflets informing people about the household tax and septic tank registration.
"We have been getting a very positive response from the public. Even those who have paid the household tax are telling us that the only reason they have paid is because of fear. "One elderly woman outside Moville Post Office said she was scared she would be sent to jail. We, the DAAA, assured this woman that she would not go to jail because no Government in their right mind would put a person of pension age in jail for owing €100 and we would hope that the good people of Ireland would not allow this to happen."
DAAA urged Mr Martin to "refrain from using scaremongering tactics on the people of Donegal".
"We would like to reiterate that this charge will not be utilised to provide or improve services but to repay unsecured bond holders.
"We, the DAAA, would also like to point out that to send out 30,000 reminder letters will be at a cost of €13,500 on postage alone. How many home help hours would that amount of money cover?" added the group's PRO, Joe Murphy.
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