Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My head is spinning from "established practice". Mr. Ciobanu-Dordea seems to be saying that if a practice has continued in a country for many years and then there is a proposal to change it, it suddenly ceases to be established practice and the proposal becomes established practice. Why is the word "established" used? It is not "changed practice", but "established practice". Does the witness not take Deputy Kelly's point that if there is an established practice, it remains so until something workable is put in its place? Clearly that has not happened in Ireland. Without getting too far into the complexities of this, is the witness saying that to meet the objectives of article 9(4) there has to be a system of individual payment?

Reference has been made to the polluter pays principle. If taxpayers generally are paying, then the polluter pays principle surely is satisfied. Where does it say, imply or direct that there must be individual charging? If that is indeed what the directive implies and if there is something in the directive that says as much, has the Commission taken any legal action against Northern Ireland? Northern Ireland does not have an individual charging system. Has the Commission taken any legal action against Scotland? Are we the only people against whom legal action is being taken? The Commission officials have said, rightly, that no one is above the law, but no one is below it either.

What is the relevance of the directive to metering? Does the directive encompass the provision of metering or would district metering be sufficient? Do we need any kind of metering at all?