Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That does not surprise me because the Labour Party has pretty much broken every commitment in its manifesto already.

People want to know how much they will be charged. The Minister of State needs to get that information out very quickly but the Government is waiting until after the local elections on 23 May. It will not let people know how much they will have to pay. People want to know what their free water allowance will be and how it will be structured. The Minister of State says the decision has not been made but he has a fair idea.

I have a large degree of sympathy for the Minister of State because he is the one who marshalled this Bill through both Houses. We had a very extensive debate here. The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, took the Bill from the Minister of State after he had brought it through the Oireachtas. When the proverbial hit the fan the Minister of State was thrown forward to defend the indefensible. That shows how the Minister operates. People want to know how much it will cost, what is the free allowance and why the meters are of a type that customers cannot read. If we want people to conserve water why can they not read their own water usage very clearly?

In respect of the composition of Uisce Éireann, does the Minister of State have any idea how many retired public and civil servants from the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government or local authorities are employed by Uisce Éireann? Those who have retired from the public service are drawing down a pension and a large lump sum and now have a great well-paid job in Uisce Éireann. What is the average pay of employees in Uisce Éireann? What are their pension entitlements? I raised this during the previous debate on this subject. The Government has brought in public sector defined-benefit style pension arrangements. Will employees of Irish Water be subject to the public service pension levy? I know the answer but this is important.

In respect of the €2 billion that the Government proposes to save, we all agree that there can be efficiencies. Does the Minister of State have a breakdown of this? Does the Minister, Deputy Hogan, have a breakdown? A total of 4,000 staff will be brought in. What is the Government's position on the average bonus of €7,000 per staff member? The Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Brian Hayes, and others, said it would not be paid but the Taoiseach back-tracked and said that it is a matter for Irish Water. It is not a matter for Irish Water. It is absurd to say that people will get bonuses before they do any work, and the way Irish Water is being established suggests that very few will deserve a bonus. People are concerned about these matters.

Any local authority that did not sign tender documents for projects approved by 31 December will have to wait for Irish Water to decide which projects proceed. This affects every local authority, including that in the Minister of State’s area, County Louth. I am aware of three in the Fingal area. The local authorities were ready to proceed with several of these urgent projects, which were funded. How long will it take Uisce Éireann to decide which capital projects proceed? What oversight interaction will the Department for the Environment, Community and Local Government undertake in deciding what projects go ahead?

My final suggestion is one that I have made before to the Minister of State in an Adjournment debate, namely, scrap the greater Dublin drainage scheme. It was planned to spend over €1 billion on the scheme. Is the greater Dublin drainage scheme now under the control of Uisce Éireann? A total of €19 million has already been spent on a project to create an orbital sewer. Does that now fall under the remit of Uisce Éireann? It probably does. If Uisce Éireann is to assess all these projects it should stop the planning process for that project immediately, as it has stopped the extension to the reservoir in Malahide and the sewerage schemes in Stockhole Lane and Portmarnock, in my own area. Against the best advice, the Government has established Uisce Éireann by hooking it up with Bord Gáis and now we have to live with that. It has to be open when people ask how much they have to pay, what is their free allowance and how will this improve our water infrastructure. What interaction will Ministers and Members have with Uisce Éireann in deciding which projects will proceed and which not? That is not at all clear to me.