The head of the Right2Water campaign has called for corporate tax hikes and more government borrowing as an alternative to the water charge.
Brendan Ogle was responding to an EPA pollution report, which criticised waste water treatment infrastructure.
Mr Ogle – who refused to rule out standing in the next general election – welcomed that report.
He says the anti-water charge movement isn't afraid to suggest alternative funding strategies.
Right2Water's Brendan Ogle says abolishing Irish Water would save money – and taxing businesses more would make up the funding shortfall.
“Sure we'll just go up to European levels, and I'm not talking about going mad here, along with France and Germany – that would generate another 7 billion euro” he said.
“With the cheap money that we can borrow within the European borrowing rules, about another 5 billion euro, we can fix not only the water system, and a hell of a lot quicker, we can stop the waste but we can also help the homelessness issue (and) the fact that we have historic levels of trolleys in our hospitals” he added.
