Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Sinn Féin did not put a stop to that. They welcomed it with open arms. The taxpayer here pays €1.2 billion for water systems through 34 different local authorities. The system is not consistent or up to standard and it will never be up to standard until sufficient money is available to invest in infrastructure. The Government is unable through the Minister for Finance and the taxation system to meet the requirement here. We have been spending an average of €300 million per year when it should be €600 million or more to meet the requirements nationally for water and waste water treatment plants and the relevant infrastructure. I can point to areas in the far west where local schemes upgraded their systems, installed meters and constructed proper water treatments plants and saved 500 million litres of water in the first year. If the Deputy talks to those people they will show him the advantage of this approach.

While it is difficult where people have a new imposition placed on them, this is necessary to provide for the future. Both parties in Government are united in the view that we need a fair, affordable system. That is why the Government is considering the categories of vulnerable people, including those who live on their own, those with children and those who have medical requirements for exceptional water use on a daily basis. The rate of installation of meters is running at an average of 27,000 per month. To date, 185,000 meters have been installed and 400,000 are to be installed by the end of the year. We must discuss the way in which assessments will be carried out where houses are not metered as against where they are. There are answers to all of these questions. Over the next two weeks, the Government will continue to discuss the issues presented by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, taking into account the figures presented in the explanation of the rules by the CSO.

The Government will make its decision in good time. We have not signed off on the Minister's proposition for the very good reason that we want to get this as right as possible.

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