Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I listened carefully to what the people have said. As Deputy Catherine Murphy is aware from living on the edge of the great conurbation of Dublin, the vast majority of the people are living in a situation where there is no room for any flexibility in terms of water supply. It is costing the taxpayer €1.2 billion to provide water services throughout the country. Some 40% of that water leaks away into the ground. This is not a runaway train. This is a commercial State body with specific terms of reference to borrow money in the markets off the Government balance sheet in order to provide the necessary investment for infrastructure for water, businesses and consumers for the next 50 to 100 years. We have not been able to compete in the way we should because of the lack of investment over many years.

The policy position from Government has been and is very clear, that is, the average household charge to the regulator will be €240 per year, or €60 per quarter. Every child is to be free in terms of water usage. The assessment carried out by Irish Water is one thing. The assessment carried out by the previous Government would give a higher usage rate of water per child. The important issue is that the direction given to the regulator by the Government is clear. The average meter charge is €240 per year and every child under the age of 18 years is to be free. The regulator will set out its assessment of the usage rate per child in the coming period. The direction from Government is very clear. Every child will be free and the average meter charge will be €240 per year.

In the Deputy's constituency the pressure for high volume pristine water for businesses and consumers alike is very strong. There is no room for messing around with the supply of water. We had this in Ballymore Eustace last year and this city almost came to a standstill, with people having to use water at night only. Given our geographic location, average rainfall per year and reservoir capacity, we should be in a far better position. Over the next decade or 20 years, Irish Water will be in a position to provide investment for infrastructure for consumer, business, industry and all the different sectors of society to bring our standards to the level at which they should be but where they have not been for a long time.

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