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

Ministers prefer to pick tens of billions out of the sky without giving any specific information about what is needed or what will be spent. The Government has to wait until next March before being told whether it can borrow off-balance-sheet, which we are still being told is the main reason for setting up Irish Water in the first place. At the same time, we continue to pay back interest of €20 million on the €500 million borrowed to install the meters that are not now required. It is not just the sum borrowed that we have to consider but also the interest payable and so forth.

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