Noel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael)

Wars have been fought around the globe over water but I did not think they would come down to this parochial level. This debate is welcome because most of us agree that water is precious. It has to be treated and supplied in a way that ensures security and high quality. Somebody must pay for that service and I fundamentally believe in the principle that the user should pay. A funding model that taxes everybody to provide water to every household across this land will not work. A considerable number of households in rural areas throughout this country do not tap into public water supplies, do not draw funds from the State and should not have to pay for other people's water and wastage.

Many Members of this House came through the local authority system. I spent 12 years on Cork County Council. Every local authority manager or engineer argues that the water pricing model which local authorities have used for the past several decades is fundamentally flawed. The €4.6 billion invested over the past decade, which we acknowledged in our amendment and which was trumpeted by Fianna Fáil, is another case of throwing money at a problem. It was like pouring money down the drain.

When meters were installed for non-domestic water supplies, leakages were found to have occurred between the meters and the taps rather than in the municipal system. That fact has been ignored thus far in this debate. By installing a metering system we can at least identify where water leaks occur. If water leaks occur in the municipal system they can be found easily even if they are not so readily fixed. However, the water that is lost between the meter and the tap is not so easily isolated.

I have reservations about charging people who cannot afford to pay a standing charge and there should be exemptions for those on social welfare or low incomes. The issue of privatisation has been raised by other speakers. In light of the experience of the UK's privatisation of water utilities in the 1980s, we must ensure the fat cats do not reap the benefits. Thankfully, capacity is not an issue for this country because our climate provides us with plenty of water. Our problem is to ensure water security and quality. Every household has a right to quality water but we have to develop an adequate funding model. The Minister's proposals will help us to achieve that goal.

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