Ministers clash on water charges

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/northern_ireland/7042587.stm

Version 0 of 1.

The minister responsible for the Water Service, Conor Murphy, has criticised his executive colleague, health minister Michael McGimpsey.

An independent review suggested on Friday that in the future water should be paid for as a clearly identified element of the rates.

Mr McGimpsey said the idea was not acceptable because all parties had pledged to reject any water charges.

Mr Murphy said executive ministers had "some tough decisions" to make.

"We all have budgets that we want to spend," he told BBC Radio's Inside Politics

"We have disappointment in the budget allocation that we currently have right across all the departments. We have efficiencies to make which will have implications for all of our departments... .

"This is real politics, this is real government, this is local people being elected to take the hard choices and that's what I'm up for and I would presume that those who have accepted the responsibility of goverment are up for the same decisions."