Pat Casey (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

To further expand on the issue of the district metering, Mr. Grant said there are over 4,400 district meters in Ireland. Does that include additional metering that the local authorities put in over the years when leaks were identified in various areas or they are separate meters? The other question on the metering process and the leakage, am I correct to say that 70% are on the public side or as Deputy Murphy said, 82% is on the public side. Why are we not investing more in district metering if it can identify these leaks, if this is where the significant loss of water is compared to the domestic side because equally €148 million is underspent in the first roll out of the metering programme. Has that capital money been relocated anywhere else or is it just sitting there? Was there ever an option considered by Irish Water for an opt-in to the metering process?

The cost of replacing meters has been raised. Has any provision been made for the maintenance of metering on an ongoing basis and, if so, has that money been spent or is it sitting somewhere to be used for the repair of meters? I do not think there is a charge for the repair and maintenance of metering as there used to be on commercial meters.