The Taoiseach has issued a warning to anti water charge campaigners after yesterday's national day of demonstration.
Enda Kenny says income tax would have to rise by 4 per cent if the charge was to be abolished.
The Fine Gael leader told guests at his party's Presidential dinner last night, that his Government's decisions have been "painful and difficult" for many people - but the current water system is not fit for purpose.
The comments are sure to anger protesters who brought much of the country to a standstill yesterday, as over a hundred thousand people took to the streets calling for the charges to be scrapped.
The rallies were organised by the group Right2Water - their spokesman Brendan Ogle says what the Government thinks isn't important:
