Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The central point I am trying to make, and which the Taoiseach deliberately refuses to deal with, was set out clearly by the previous Government in the EU-IMF agreement and the national recovery plan, namely, that water charges would be introduced on the basis of "ensuring that lower-income groups remain supported". The Taoiseach has not done that in the regime his Government is introducing. Deputy O'Dowd - who, as Minister of State, introduced the legislation - said as much yesterday.

I asked the Taoiseach about the situation for the 370,000 people who are out of work. The household benefits package does not cover the unemployed. Will he answer my question? Does he think the unemployed are in a position to afford these charges? Will he answer my question about the nearly €400 charge for a family with three adults, which may well include children in full-time education, with the additional costs that involves? That charge will be nearly €500 for a four-adult family. I am not making these figures up; they were given out by the regulator. It is incomprehensible to me that households on boil water notice should have to pay anything at all, given that their water is not fit for consumption.

That is the central point. The Nevin Economic Research Institute has done work on this, which we have read. We have done our research in order to be constructive. We believe those categories merit a substantive response and not the false assertions and the usual stuff the Taoiseach goes on with. Can the Taoiseach specifically speak to the unemployed in terms of water charges? Can he speak to the families with children over 18 years of age who are going to college or who are unemployed? Will he address the questions asked of him, because he has neglected them? In fairness to Deputy O'Dowd, out of office he has had the honesty to say that a poverty analysis was done by the Department but it has never been published. Why has it not been published? The Taoiseach rammed all this through the Dáil before last Christmas with no debate and when some of these issues-----

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