Ms Maria Graham:

Under the business plan, approximately 46% of the capital plan would come from debt, 28% would come from equity and 26% would come from customer revenue. This refers to the period from 2017 to 2021. Under this model, customer revenue from charges would help to fund the capital programme. It is obviously feasible for the State to step in under the expert model arrangement or in another scenario. The question is the certainty one would have in this regard and what would be put in around that mechanism. The expert commission had one view in which the State would be the customer. The less revenue one has from charges, the more one has the issue of water at the table, alongside housing, transport and other areas and sectoral interests that are seeking to secure capital. This is simply part of the normal Government arithmetic.