Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)

The EPA's report on drinking water published last January indicated that 339 schemes out of a total of 994 are contaminated. The Minister will require substantial resources to rectify this problem. Will he engage with the local authorities in regard to the manner in which schemes are approved and, where the money is allocated, the length of time it takes before a waste water treatment system or water scheme is rolled out? It currently takes some four and a half years with the toing and froing that goes on in regard to design, detailed design and so on. Has the Minister any plans to expedite the process by which this money is drawn down so that work can get under way as quickly as possible?

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