John Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

-----because they never seem to take into account people's ability to pay. From having listened to the Minister this evening, I believe he seems to be saying again that the final decision will rest with the regulator.

With regard to the social protection budget, the Minister made great play about the concessions he will give to less well-off people in society. The concessions will amount to approximately €40 million in total and will come from the social protection budget. This raises alarm bells in respect of the impact on key social welfare supports. The Government has already slashed child benefit and cut a range of supports for people with disabilities and their carers. It has targeted young jobseekers. The Government needs to spell out exactly where the €40 million is to come from. Will it be taken from next year's budget or this year's? Will it require cuts to social welfare payments in the future?

Currently, responsibility for the supervision and licensing of group water schemes rests with local authorities. Will this continue to be the case? What is the position on the schemes? There are many such schemes in County Wexford. I am sure the Minister appreciates the great work being done voluntarily by those organising group water schemes throughout the country. I am sure he will clear up the matter tonight. Some groups feel under threat and that they will be forced to hand over their schemes to Irish Water eventually, although perhaps not this year or the next. Tremendous partnerships have existed between local authorities and group water schemes down through the years. This is the way to continue. Will future financing of group water schemes be carried out directly by the Government or Department, or will the funding have to come from Uisce Éireann? The Minister needs to clarify this. I hope that tonight, when he is responding, he will outline very clearly where he sees group water schemes fitting into the modern water scheme for the future. Will the group schemes continue to be under the control of local authorities or will they eventually be taken over by Uisce Éireann?

Despite the Minister’s announcement today, we have not got the full picture. It is a case of fobbing us off to get his party and the Labour Party over the local elections on 23 May. There is a lot of small print still to be issued and it will seriously affect people, who will have to pay more than €238 per annum. As some Deputies have pointed out tonight, they could be paying twice that by the time the full facts emerge on foot of the Minister's announcement today.

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