Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this discussion. We are all glad that after a lengthy, arduous and tortuous debate on this issue, we have at least arrived at some type of clarity. I compliment the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and the Minister of State at that Department on their efforts in this area. I have long had reservations on the question of water charges and I predicted many of the issues that arose long before they did. That is not to say I am opposed to the concept of charging for water. Certainly, we have an obligation to put across the message that water is not an endless resource and issues regarding supply cannot be kicked down the road. The matter must be dealt with from a conservation point of view and we have an obligation to ensure we manage this important commodity in a serious way. The proposals announced yesterday succeed in that regard.

The important issue now is how we travel on from here. I cannot help but feel sad for the Opposition parties. Unfortunately, from their point of view, the economy has come right, which they did not expect. It was totally against the run of play. To be fair, I was convinced three or four years ago that this country was finished for at least 20 years. However, thanks to the stoicism of the Irish people and the leadership given by the Government, we have recovered very considerably. Of course, that is not in line with the agenda of the Opposition. It is unfortunate that the parties opposite are competing with each other in a way never seen before for electoral support. The unfortunate Fianna Fáil Deputies are competing with the Independent group, the Technical Group and Sinn Féin. Members of Sinn Féin, taking the responsible approach, initially stated their intention to support water charges. Lo and behold, however, they did an about-turn when it became clear that to do so might garner electoral support.

It is important to deal with the question of the right to water. Of course everybody has a right to water; it was always that way. However, in the past people had to go down to the pump in the village square and turn the tap. Incidentally, in those days the water was not actually free because there were rates to be paid. The right to water also applies if one wants to go to the river, take it out in a bucket and bring it home. Thanks be to God, we do not have to do that anymore. These days we employ people to do all the work for us, namely, treating the water and piping it into our homes. When we get to the point where we have a sophisticated water system, some way has to be found to put in place a structure to deal with it. While we might not like the concept of a body like Irish Water, there is no other way to do it. It has been proven that without such an entity, what we want to achieve will not be achieved. The National Roads Authority is a good example in this regard, which is not to say the local authorities were not also effective in their previous role.

As other speakers noted, it seems there are no depths to which some people will not go to further their political ambitions and display their wares to the people. All they are doing is competing for the vote in the next general election and seeking to buy that election. In doing so, they are treating some people in a despicable fashion. I refer in particular to the incidents which took place last Saturday in Tallaght. I have spoken to some of the people who were present, none of whom is at all associated with either the Tánaiste's party or the protestors. They told me it was a horrifying event which left many people who were there frightened. Some of them have not yet recovered from the effects. What worries me even more is that the finger of blame has subsequently pointed toward the Garda and institutions of State, including the Department and the Government. The idea seems to be that if those people were not there, the protests would not be taking place. I take this opportunity to issue a warning to the House. Responsible people power is fine up to a point. Let us not forget, however, that the manifestations of people power we have seen throughout Europe in the past were not the sort of which we would wish to boast. We should all be very careful how far down that road we go lest we end up with something we do not really want.

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