Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)

Mar atá a fhios againn uilig sa Dáil, inniu céad lá den Rialtas a bheith in oifig. Tá sé oiriúnach go bhfuilimid ag plé an rúin seo faoi tháillí uisce mar seo ceann des na flip flops agus na gealltanais atá briste ag an Rialtas agus a bhfuil Sinn Féin á cur i láthair inniu. Tá níos mó na 50 gealltanais briste ag an Rialtas. Cuirfidh seo isteach go mór isteach ar an ghnáth dhuine, go háirithe ar dhaoine atá ar an ngannchuid.

Today is the hundredth day of Fine Gael and Labour in office. It marks 100 days of U-turns, broken promises and dashed hopes. The announcement by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government that the Government intends to introduce a household charge in January of next year, followed by water charges and a property tax in 2013, is one of more than 50 U-turns and broken promises identified by Sinn Féin this week.

While nobody is surprised that Fine Gael would bring forward proposals to introduce two new stealth taxes, what is surprising is the willingness of the Labour Party to acquiesce in this matter. At their annual conference only last year, the Labour Party, none of whose Members are in the Chamber, passed a motion reaffirming their opposition to the introduction of water charges. They committed the party to abolish water tax if in Government. They also committed to providing an adequate standard of water to every home in the State, funded by a progressive tax system.

Today, we face the prospect of a Government, involving the same Labour Party, proposing the introduction of a regressive water tax that Labour opposed only 12 months ago. Worse still, Labour look set to support a flat rate household charge, otherwise known as a property tax. Did the Labour Party not repeatedly state during the election campaign that they would oppose the introduction of a property tax? It seems that resolutions at party conferences and election manifesto commitments mean little to the Labour Party. After only 100 days in office they are sounding increasingly like their predecessors.

Sinn Féin, as outlined by my party colleagues, is opposed to water charges. We are opposed to them on environmental, economic and social justice grounds. The Minister says the main purpose of his proposed water tax is to conserve water. A more effective way of achieving this would be to invest in replacing the existing water system. In my own county, 50% of all water is lost through the system before it reaches the domestic households. Meters will do nothing to change this.

We all know that the metering of water has nothing to do with conservation but is another crude revenue raising measure demanded by the EU and IMF under the terms of the austerity deal. Like the regressive forms of taxation it will hit low and middle income earners hardest. These are the same people who are suffering rising inflation, interest rates and unemployment and, for those lucky enough to have a job, lower wages. The economics of such charges is obvious. Consumer spending will be further reduced as people will have less disposable income. In turn, more private sector jobs will be lost. For those already living close to the edge of the poverty line, a further tax will push many over the edge.

I appeal to Fine Gael to listen to the calls we have made and to what their partners in Government said a couple of months ago. I will conclude with a quote from the Minister without portfolio, Deputy Brendan Howlin. He said, "It makes no sense to spend hundreds of millions of euro metering a leaky system". Fair play. They are sentiments my party and I completely endorse.

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