Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)

Has the Minister ever heard of proper planning involving rainwater harvesting? That is what the Minister should be looking at in the Department. It was part of the plans envisaged by the former Minister, Mr. Gormley, that rainwater would be harvested in tanks and used by households and schools. A retrofit programme is required to harvest rainwater for two and three classroom schools so that all the water could be kept, except for drinking water.

I know what it costs to produce water. I am not against charging for water. It is a huge cost to provide clean, uncontaminated and fully treated water. It should not be used for washing cars, yards, roofs or other such things. We must have regard and respect for water. Metering will probably help the situation in that regard. However, I object to the money involved and to handing over responsibility to Bord Gáis. I thank my own local authority area, South Tipperary County Council, for its excellent submission to the Department. I hope the Minister has read it. He probably has not given that he did not take the submissions on the septic tank issue. However, it did make a submission to him. I thank the county council also for the way in which it maintains the water system, provides water and fixes leaks. There is an excellent team led in recent years by Aidan Fennessey. From my days on the county council I understand that a meter has been fitted for the past 12 years for every new water connection or every time there is a water leak. Are they all going to be dumped now? What kind of backwards-thinking country do we have that they could not be modified and made suitable?

I wish I had much more time. Bord na Móna and Bord Gáis were lobbying strongly for the administration of the water service. Why does it have to be the preserve of such people? I wish to see ordinary people, contractors and plumbers getting the work on the ground, not big conglomerates who might be friends of the Minister that he might meet on golf courses. I do not frequent such places. I refer to the K Club and other such places and some place in Kerry where the Minister was caught for intemperate language.

This is a fine mess the Minister has created again. We should call him the messy Minister because what he is doing is not necessary. I agree with water metering but I object to the Minister's cavalier attitude. An important referendum is coming up. I said to the Taoiseach the other day that he should send the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, and the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, to a foreign country on a six week long trip to return when the referendum is over, otherwise it will be lost because they annoy the people. They are like a nest of wasps which one wants to kick out of one's way. They belittle the people. It ill behoves the Minister, Deputy Hogan, who has been in the House for a long time. He is elected by the people of Kilkenny whom I am sure we will meet on the hurling field before the year is out and we will play them fair and square. The Minister does not play fair and square here. He uses bully-boy tactics which are unacceptable to me. While I am here I will be keeping watch on the Minister. People tell me I would want to be careful of big Phil-----

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