Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Calleary for moving this motion last night in my absence. Irrespective of what it might be and the scrutiny we might place on it, I thank the Government for eventually coming forward with a package despite the fact that it was dragged kicking and screaming before we could analyse this in the manner it deserves. I do not want to rehash or go into huge detail about the story that has been Irish Water since it was first announced in March 2012. This was a story that was clouded in secrecy where a concerted effort was made by the Government to withhold information about the mammoth costs associated with the setting up of Irish Water from this House by virtue of not answering parliamentary questions and, by association, withholding information from the public.

Despite Government assurances when it awarded Bord Gáis the contract, we learned in January 2014 that Bord Gáis did not have half the expertise at its disposal that it apparently stated it did have when it won the contract from Bord na Móna in the first instance. We know now that this misinformation cost the taxpayer €80 million. That was the cost associated with consultancy fees or as was explained to us thereafter, outside expertise. I understand that queries from many Members and most definitely those from the media are being farmed out to a public relations company for answering. We have obviously learned nothing since then if it is still paying huge rates for outside expertise in respect of simple questions.

That misinformation also cost the Government and Irish Water their credibility in respect of this project. It allowed us to shine a light on Irish Water and that light exposed the fact that Irish Water was growing and continues to grow into a super-sized, bonus-driven quango - a quango of a middle and high-ranking management tier that is newly created on top of existing personnel and expertise in local authorities. This is a quango that rushed to create its own corporate identity and has yet to identify a specific roadmap or plan having failed to publish, audit and identify how it would reduce leakage, for example, from 40% to 20%. We have no idea, as many Members said earlier.

This quango and Government were always solely interested in inflicting charges as soon as was practicably possible. The Government has form in the few short years it has been in office because it inflicted a household charge and a property tax without, as it said itself, a red cent being spent locally in the counties and local authorities from which it was taken despite a promise given in the past. We should not be surprised that it would put the cart before the horse in this area as well.

I have read the various reports outlining the details of yesterday's announcement. I have watched and listened attentively to Labour and Fine Gael representatives in the media and in this House seek to assure the public that the charges that are now being proposed are fair and reasonable. However, I have also listened to representatives from Irish Water and was particularly interested to hear them say that they will still get the full cost recovery from households. One of Irish Water's representatives stated categorically today that in the absence of a standing charge, Irish Water will make up the difference by virtue of raising the price of water per litre in order to compensate it for the loss it experienced when Labour challenged the Fine Gael Minister some weeks ago.

I have also been asking myself why the Government did not produce tables of different family types and different households, as it would in a budget, to show the public the effect of these proposed charges. In the absence of such tables, it seems that it is up to us in Opposition as usual to expose what is going on here. I will give the Minister of State some options and examples which I believe to be correct having listened to Irish Water today. If I am wrong, I want the Minister of State and the Government to correct it immediately so that the public has a better idea of what exactly it will cost them when these charges come through their doors next January. I will bring the Minister of State back three weeks ago when Fine Gael brought its memo to Cabinet. We were told that the charge would be €240 per average household, there would be a free allowance and there would be a €50 standing charge.

Let us analyse that. The CSO says that an average household is 2.7 occupants. The average use by any person is reckoned to be 55,000 l per year. So if one multiplies 2.7 by 55,000, that adds up to 148,500 l. We will permit a free allowance of 30,000 l considering that this was what the Government said yesterday and assuming that was what it was saying three weeks ago. That is 118,500 l used. Irish Water has its €50 standing charge off the top so let us divide 190 by 118,500 l. This gives one a cost per litre of €0.0016. That is the average. Let us look at the example of a household with parents and four children, one of whom is over 18. This is based on three weeks ago. Six times 55,000 litres is 330,000 l. The free allowance for the household of 30,000 l - that was what the Government said then - so 300,000 l are used by that household. If one uses the example I have just explained which is the per litre rate of €0.0016, the charge ends up being €480 per year. That is a long way from €240.

Let us fast forward to yesterday when Labour supposedly had its say. We all get together, find the reason to throw this at the wall and allow it to stick long enough to get us beyond 23 May and let the repercussions come thereafter if they wish but our candidates will not be sacrificed in the mean time. That is the message that had to be put out. Let us go back to the average people again - 2.7 occupants per household and 148,500 l less the free allowance per household of 30,000 l. Let us assume the 0.7 occupant is under 18, let us allow them to become one whole person rather than 0.7 of one and take away another 38,000 which the Government says is the free allowance for a child under 18. We have 88,500 l to be costed. Irish Water says it will get full cost recovery so it must up the rate per cent per litre. It comes out at 0.0027 cent per litre. Let us go back to the family of two plus four with one person over 18. A total of 330,000 l are used and the free allowance for the household is 30,000.

Let us have the Labour Party's sap. With three children under the age of 18 years, let us allow them 38,000 litres each. Great, it will do this. That is a total of 114,000 litres. That means only 196,000 litres will have to be charged for, but they will be charged for at 0.0027 cent per litre, which is equal to a figure of €527. That is the point Deputy Joe Higgins has been making all day, but nobody wants to listen to him or give him time for fear it might get out. The cat is out of the bag on this one.

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