Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I begin by wishing everybody a happy new year. It is a bit disappointing to see that Deputy Cowen must not have had a break over Christmas to read up on Irish Water. As he rightly acknowledges, the new charging structure will see a gross charge of €160 for an individual living alone, less the water conservation grant of €100 that the Department of Social Protection will pay. That is a net charge of €60. For a family, the gross charge will be €260, less the €100 water conservation grant. This compares very favourably with the €400 annual water charge that was originally proposed by Fianna Fáil. I suppose it slipped the Deputy's mind, but it is what his party put on the table.

Having given that clarification, I move on to the more important point. Our antiquated water system is not fit for purpose in terms of the needs of every man, woman and child in this country and the need for employment, investment and growth in the economy. As I understand it, Fianna Fáil was once a party that supported public investment in the infrastructure of this country and the employment that creates. When it managed to lose the banks, however, it seemed also to lose its taste for the investment that this country badly needs. At this time there are 42 points in this country at which raw sewage is being pumped into rivers, lakes and beaches. Even if that does not concern Deputy Cowen, it does concern most people in this country, particularly those who have to live near these locations. The water charges that have been set out are reasonable.

In regard to water meters, it feels these days as though Fianna Fáil is basically looking to identify anything and everything it can to denigrate the people who work in water services in this country and the people who are committed to investing in and providing clean water for the population. I am sure the Deputy has had an opportunity to read the newspapers today, in which case he will have seen the views expressed by an expert in one particular article and echoed in all of the media. This expert indicates that it will, in due course, take around five minutes to replace a meter and that it will cost some €50 million to do so for all meters. The expected lifespan of the devices in terms of the guarantee and the work that is being carried out is a minimum of 15 years. In fact, based on the experience in other countries, it is likely to be significantly longer than that. I do not know if the Deputy has ever actually looked at what the water meter set-up is, but the only thing that will have to be changed is the actual meter. As I said, experts indicate that it will take something like five minutes to do so, that it can be done at a very low cost and that many of the meters will go well beyond the indicated guaranteed lifespan of 15 years.

To be honest, what the Deputy is concerned about is a total ball of smoke.

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