Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The social welfare package in this budget is the first since the fatal bank guarantee introduced by the previous Government to benefit very significant numbers of people. The restoration, on a partial basis, of the Christmas bonus has been very widely welcomed by the 1.1 million people who will benefit. One of the reasons for the different numbers quoted by the Deputy is that water charges are a household matter, whereas the Christmas bonus is a question of payment to individuals, many of whom may reside in the same household. In terms of the figures quoted by the Deputy, there is probably some confusion between individuals and household numbers.

Let us be very clear. Every man, woman and child in the country needs a supply of clean drinking water. As a country, we need to invest at least €600 million a year for the next three years in water services and thereafter we need to invest at a rate of about €1 billion a year. This time last year, pubs and restaurants in the Dublin region were about to close down because the capital of the country did not have enough water to supply all the people living in the city. We know about the situation in different parts of the country, such as when Galway could not provide drinking water for its population a number of years ago because of cryptosporidium. The objective of providing a supply of quality clean water for individuals, businesses, industrial development, tourism and agriculture is important.

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