"I Felt I Had No Other Way..."

Over June and July, Tony Rochford spent 25 days on hunger strike protesting the property tax, a levy he describes as “extreme.”

Contrary to reports, Rochford was not demanding that the government revoke the tax in its entirety, although he does object to it. Rather he feels the tax should not be linked to business tax owed by the self-employed.
“The household charge is connected directly to company tax. I’m a sole trader and they wouldn’t accept my tax returns or VAT returns unless I paid the household charge. So they won’t issue me with a tax clearance certificate. I can’t work.”
The amount itself wasn’t the issue, explains Rochford.
“I completely object to the household charge and I have no problem if they want to take me to court for not paying it. By linking it directly to a self-employed person’s company tax, if you don’t pay you’re effectively put out of business.
“For the three years I was out of work I got no help from the government whatsoever. I got myself out of trouble, I got working again and now the government throw this on top of me at a time when I can’t pay my full mortgage repayments.”
Hot Press meets Rochford the day after he ended his hunger strike. He is shockingly thin, the outlines of his skull visible beneath his worn, tired face.
“I knew I was at risk of a heart attack because my blood pressure was dangerously low. I have a touch of bronchitis. Because the immune system is so low you can progress very quickly to pneumonia. I’ve only one eye and that started flickering. One of the first things you lose is your sight.
“I haven’t achieved my objective as such yet. But, if nothing else, I have highlighted how low people get. I could see no end. I was suicidal for the last few years. I couldn’t see a way out of my problems – every time I took a step forward I was getting knocked back again. I felt it was the only way I could make a protest.”
Did Rochford’s wife support the idea of a hunger strike?
“No, no, definitely not!” he admits. “I love my wife but I felt I was too much of a burden on her. My first priority is to protect my wife. Me dying? Personally, I didn’t mind that. I felt at least if I am dead she wouldn’t be wasting any more money on me.”
Rochford is keen to stress that other people should not follow his example. Before undertaking the hunger strike he was in excellent physical condition, which was one reason he lasted as long as he did.
“I felt I had no other way of drawing attention to my plight and expose the hidden world of depression and the pressure people are under. We are getting calls in every day of people hanging themselves. There are an awful lot of people committing suicide around the country. Their stories are hidden.”