Michelle Mulherin (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the representatives of the commission. It is regrettable that we were not able to have this conversation before the CER issued the price of water. Nonetheless, considering the storm of concern among the public about water provision, charging for it, fairness, affordability and so forth, it is important that the representatives are present at this meeting. The main concern is affordability, fairness and customer protection, which Mr. McGowan mentioned, and that water customers will be looked after correctly and will not have inappropriate charges levied on them.

What is the real cost of producing water and treating wastewater, taking infrastructure into account? Mr. McGowan said the system in place was not fit for purpose, when one considered leaks, boil water notices, the lack of sewage treatment works and the array of problems in that regard. What is the cost of producing water? On the last occasion the representatives appeared before the committee I raised a concern which had been raised previously in the media that the estimated cost of the additional local authority workers - an estimated 2,000 people were moving from the local authorities to Irish Water - would be €2 billion up to 2023. Is this cost one of the factors the CER must consider and is it factored into the price it has devised? Is it being passed on in the charges arrived at by the CER?

On the cost of producing and treating water, it appears to be very neat that the cost of producing water if a person is only receiving a water supply service, as opposed to having wastewater going into the public mains, is simply half the price. It does not sound very scientific.

I would like to know the basis for the figure of €244 for receiving the water and double that amount for having it treated out. Some people are only using one of those services and I ask whether some of the cost of treating wastewater is being imposed on people who are already paying for water. In rural areas where people are already paying for water, the rate per cubic litre is less than what Irish Water is proposing to charge and the allowances are higher. In my own county the allowance is approximately 50,000 gallons, or approximately 200,000 l, for a domestic dwelling compared to the proposed 30,000 l. This is a significant figure when the cost is being passed onto people if it also includes the treatment of sewage.

I ask for clarification on the cost of and timeframe for metering. In regard to the call-out charge, surely an individual who calls out Irish Water to deal with a problem in a property is also entitled to hire a private plumber instead. I ask the witnesses to confirm that. If I report a leak in the public road to Irish Water, I presume I will not be charged for a call out. Perhaps that, too, can be clarified.

I am mindful that the Chairman has directed us to discuss water tariffs but the regulator gave us an assurance at our last meeting that only the real costs associated with the production of water would be passed on to the water consumer or customer. The regulator indicated that it would act as watchdog to ensure we get fair prices. This is aside from the debate about whether we should pay for water. The eye of the current storm is the issue of bonuses. The most ridiculous thing I have heard is that somebody who is not working well can get a bonus of up to 9% to encourage him or her to work well.