Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

When I was elected to this House two and a half years ago I never expected to find myself participating in a debate to discuss a bit of snow, a drop of rain and a few frozen pipes. It is extraordinary that we have reached this magnitude of a crisis on the basis of something which should be simple. It is an indictment not only of our national Government but of our local government structures in this country. It also speaks volumes about the lack of accountability in local authorities at a local level. 8 o'clock

How have we arrived at this point? We have seen 14 or 15 years of a so-called boom, the Celtic tiger, where we know money was squandered and in which there was no investment in vital infrastructure. It is interesting to listen to Ministers talk a big game about broadband infrastructure, building highways across the country and becoming the most competitive economy in Europe when we cannot even manage to invest in the most basic infrastructure for human This came to the fore during the recent fiasco, the handling of which was extraordinary. I will speak of my experience in the Dublin City Council area. That parts of my constituency have not had water for up to four weeks is an indictment of the political system at all levels but especially of the Government's failure to provide the resources required to invest in vital infrastructure. To cite one example of the impact of the crisis, a well respected and world renowned chain of hotels based in my constituency almost had to close down and relocate hundreds of guests visiting for an international conference because it was not notified in advance by Dublin City Council that its water was to be turned off. We managed to have the water supply restored for a period, thus avoiding such a scenario. To describe this incident as unprofessional or a national embarrassment is to put it mildly.

Families in my constituency still do not have water and have no idea when it will be restored. It is clear that a number of measures must be taken. First, meaningful Government investment, as opposed to token gestures by the Minister, must be made in an effective and adequate water piping system in Dublin and other counties. Second, a national response unit must be established, which can step up to the plate in the event of crises of this nature recurring in future. The recent crisis caused major economic destruction for businesses, small and large, across the country, not to speak of the inconvenience and damage it caused families.

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