Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

-----or he wants to take the money from other departmental budgets, whether that is health, education or social protection, which the Government is working to protect. There are options, and the Government has come up with a workable solution that has worked previously. That is what the debate should be about. Whether it is this Government or a future Government, future generations will not thank any of us if we do not act now to secure the future of the valuable resource that is Irish Water.

I welcome the amendment that has been tabled by the Minister to reassure people who have doubts about the Government's intentions in respect of public ownership of this valuable infrastructure. The Government has gone to great lengths to reassure people that it is not the intention to privatise the water network. If we were so determined to privatise, why have we not privatised the ESB's network, which is much more valuable? We resisted that when pressure was applied due to the economic challenge with which the Government was presented when the troika was in town. The Government resisted all attempts to privatise the national electricity network. The proof is in the pudding.

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