A campaign for a referendum on the public ownership of Irish Water has been launched by the Green Party in Dublin.

The campaign was launched in the Hilton Hotel by Green Party Leader Eamon Ryan, Deputy Leader Councillor Catherine Martin, Chairman and Justice Spokesperson Councillor Roderic O'Gorman, and Environment Spokesperson Councillor Malcolm Noonan.

The Green Party is calling on the Government to advance the legislation for a referendum on public ownership of water as a priority, and to ensure that it is included with the Bills already scheduled to be passed in order to hold other referendum in 2015.

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Green Party Leader, Eamon Ryan, said: "The Government has lost the confidence of the people in the way they have gone about the establishment of Irish Water. One of the primary concerns repeatedly cited by members of the public is that the company has been established in a manner which allows for its future privatisation. We believe that our water supply should never be up for sale.

"We can ensure that that will never happen by inserting a new Article into our constitution which would guarantee the public ownership of our water supply into the future. At the moment, the continued public ownership of this precious resource hangs on the support of the government of the day.

"This is why we're calling on all political parties and independent members of the Oireachtas to support such an approach, and on the Government to include such a proposal in a referendum next year."

(CD/JP)