Luke Flanagan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)

Like the previous speaker, I do not agree with the introduction of this fee. This is supposed to be about ensuring we have clean water rather than gathering more finance to be wasted by local authorities, which authorities are totally and utterly unaccountable. If one tries to make them accountable, one gets a slap on the wrist in the form of non-improvement of roads and so on. It is definitely not a system in which I believe another €50 or even a single red cent should be invested.

The more I listen to the Minister, the clearer it becomes that this is not about clean water, in particular when it comes to the collection of money likely to be spent on daft projects. If this was about clean water, the Minister would not be continually telling us that the standards that will apply will not be the 2009 standards. Is there something wrong with the 2009 standards? Are they too onerous? Is it not possible technologically to ensure septic tanks meet the 2009 standards? Surely, the higher the standard, the cleaner the water, and the cleaner the water the better for all of us. That is not the impression I am getting.

Any time anyone suggests that septic tanks will have to meet 2009 standards, they are told that will not be the case, as if somehow that is good news. If it is good news, why then are the 2009 standards in place? If not, why does the Government not change them? If septic tanks are to be required to meet standards, then the Government will have to give people the money to do the work, whatever it takes, including where the landholding is too small for a percolation system and another form of technology has to be used.

As usual, it is a case of let us try to cod Europe. We will run it down and around the next corner, tell everyone the reason it is great and then run it down again. We either want clean water or we do not. We are either going to be straight up with the rest of the world or we are not. If we are going to be straight up with it, we go for the best possible standards. I hope this Government wants to have in place the best possible standards. The Minister, in continually telling us that the 2009 standards will not apply, is saying this is not about water quality. The Government is codding people to get this legislation through.

See this speech in context