Speaking on Saturday, party spokesperson David Forde said:

"Sinn Féin have this week been contacted by a large number of householders in Wexford town who have received letters from the Borough Council Solicitor threatening legal action unless amounts as high as, and exceeding €1,000, are not paid within fourteen days. It is disgraceful that the Borough Council, which has a direct responsibility for allowing arrears of such magnitude to accumulate, is now threatening its own citizens with legal action, while Councillors from other parties stand by and allow this assault on homes that simply cannot afford to pay these large amounts.

"These threatening letters should be recalled immediately.

"While acknowledging that a solution must be found to the waste managment crisis and to the problem of the underfunding of local authorities, it must be clear that the imposition of excessive bin charges on domestic households is not a long term or valid solution to either of these separate crises.

"The present sysytem of bin charges is in reality a deterrent to the reducing and recycling of waste. It encourages people to throw all of their waste, unseparated, into wheelie bins and this only adds to the waste management crisis.

Neither does it solve the problem of the underfunding of local authorities, by asking those who have already paid their taxes to central government to pay another local tax in order to make up the shortfall in funding.

This is the double taxation that other councillors have on the one hand denied exists, yet on the other hand have declared that local authorities must pursue to properly function.

"With legal action now hanging over the heads of householders in Wexford, it is high time that the Councillors from other parties joined with Sinn Féin in opposing these unjust charges and acted to represent and protect the people of Wexford, who elected them, instead of representing the uncaring agenda of Minister Martin Cullen."