Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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On a point of information, I was initially scheduled for the second slot. Why was I changed to speak in the fourth slot?

Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
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I am informed the sequence is down to the Ceann Comhairle’s office and the availability of Ministers.

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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I wanted the senior Minister here or at least the Minister of State, Deputy O'Dowd, who were the ones who made statements last week with regard to free water for those under 18 years according to the Government scheme and to answer for the fact that every objective yardstick available to the Department shows that the allowance they have proposed does not add up to that.

The Minister, Deputy Hogan, stated on RTE television news on Wednesday last that the water tax for a family of five, which could be two parents and, for example, three students over 18, would be €450 a year. The Taoiseach stated a few weeks ago that when subsidies from central taxation to water production are ended, which is the Government and the European Union policy, the average tax would be €580 per year per household. I wonder whether the Government has any clue of the crushing new economic burden that these demands will place on ordinary householders.

On the immediate issue on which I need clarification today, Deputy Hogan stated in Dáil Éireann on Tuesday, 6 May, that an allowance of 38,000 litres a year for those under 18 meant "that water charges will...only apply to adults". On national RTE television news on Tuesday also, the Minister stated that, effectively, children, meaning those under 18 years, are free. On Wednesday, the Minister of State, Deputy O'Dowd, stated that the 38,000 litres a year allowance for every under 18 year old, "results in free water for children." That is false and I require the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, to correct that today.

The study, Water Supply Project - Dublin Region, which was commissioned and sponsored by the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, found average usage of water in Dublin to be 148 litres per person per day, that is, 54,000 litres a year. The Government states that so-called "free" water for those under 18 years means 38,000 litres per year. A 17 year old does not need to wash less, drink less or use sanitary facilities less than, let us say, a 20 year old and the 38,000 litre allowance for a 17 year old is 16,000 litres short of what, according to the water supply project of the Department, a 17 year old would use in a year. Therefore, there is not free water for those under 18 years, as the Ministers state. In case Deputy Jan O'Sullivan comes back and states that perhaps they could economise, according to the projections in the document to which I refer, with all metering and charging in place by 2030 the average use will be 130 litres per person per day, which is still 10,000 litres more than the free allowance for those under 18 years. I need the Minister of State to clarify, tell the people the truth of this matter, admit that the figures are incorrect and correct them.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I am answering on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Hogan, who unfortunately cannot be here.

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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Of course, he cannot.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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Last week, the Government announced details of its decision on the funding model for Irish Water. The announcement included details of the free allowance, which will be provided to all customers of Irish Water, which will equate to 30,000 litres per household. An additional allowance will be provided in respect of each child under the age of 18 to cover the normal usage by every child in his or her primary residence. The allowance will be based on the same qualifying conditions as child benefit. This allowance will be up to 38,000 litres per child per year. The level of consumption on which the level of the free allowance for children is based, will be verified by water metering data to be provided to the Commission for Energy Regulation. The provision of the free allowance for children in this way means that no additional charges arise for children and will increase the affordability of water charges for families with children.

Supporting the affordability of water charges is a critical policy objective of the Government. The provision of the free allowance along with a number of other policy measures demonstrates the Government's commitment in this regard. Among the additional measures are a decision that there will be no standing charge for households and that a minimum charge may apply to properties, such as holiday homes, which are not permanently occupied; support for those with certain medical conditions by capping the level of charge at the assessed charge - details of this are being finalised with the Department of Health; the provision of additional support for pensioners, persons with disabilities and carers who receive the household benefits package; a commitment to maintain the average charge for domestic water charges at €240 for 2015 and 2016; a requirement for assessed charges to be based on occupancy to provide the best proxy for usage, with provision for rebates for those moving from assessed to metered charges; and the introduction of a "first fix free" scheme by Irish Water at a cost of €51 million.

The Commission for Energy Regulation, CER, has been provided with statutory responsibility for the economic regulation of Irish Water. Under the legislation, the CER will be responsible for approving the water charges plan prepared by Irish Water. The CER has announced that it will be consulting on the water charges plan in June this year, and that the approved water charges plan will be announced in August. Accordingly, households will have full clarity on the level of charges in advance of their introduction.

The Minister, Deputy Hogan, has announced his intention to use his powers under the Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 to issue a policy direction to the Commission for Energy Regulation to provide that the Government's decision on the funding model is incorporated into the water charges plan to be approved by the Commission.

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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The Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, shames herself coming in here today and engaging in deliberate obfuscation and giving me the whole policy that I did not ask for and that I am aware of. She singularly failed to address the key issue I raised, which is, that an allowance of 38,000 litres a year for an under 18 year old does not amount to what she called "free" water for children - those under 18 years. I have quoted the Department's study to prove that. Will she address that? That is the only point I want addressed.

I am aware of all the other stuff and what a considerable burden this will be for families. In two or three years, when EU policy and the Government's neoconservative policies come into effect and the subsidy from central taxation is removed, the price of water for families will shoot up. Of course, we hope to build a movement of opposition that will force the abolition of this progressive and reactionary tax on households.

I need the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, since she was deputised by the senior Minister, Deputy Hogan, to come in here today, to answer the net point. Why does she state that 38,000 litres per year is so-called "free" water for those under 18 years when the Department's own study shows that a 17 year old will use on average 54,000 litres and, in the best possible circumstances, would also in 16 years' time be way over that limit? It is simple. I ask her to clarify.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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The figures upon which this is based is a study by Atkins which identifies the amount of water used per size of households and there is other information available to the Department, for example, in relation to the amount of water consumed in the United Kingdom.

It is based on the fact that one does not automatically add the full amount for a one-person household multiplied by four for a four-person household because that is not the reality. If I put on a wash in my washing machine, and I have a five or six-person household, a person in a one-person household puts a wash in a washing machine as well but he or she is only catering for one person. That is only one example. It is not correct to state if one has a four-person household, one multiplies by four the amount of water consumed in a one-person household. I merely want to make that point to the Deputy. The Atkins study is the study upon which the figures were based and that study suggests that the amount of allocation for children is enough to ensure that children are free.