Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Socialist Party) | Oireachtas source

The Minister should be straight about whether he agrees with what Irish Water states in briefings to Deputies, that it is most likely that private landlords will be able to collect the money for bills, plus fines, from deposits, while councils will be able to attach them to rents. Does the Minister agree with this? Is that the way he sees it in pursuance of non-payment by tenants? He can outline all the options he likes and make it really easy for people to pay, but the indications are that they will not. Only 17% of tenants have registered with Irish Water. The Minister has used the overall figures to suggest there will be a high level of non-payment and the corollary must be that tenants are not going to pay water charges. They have faced massive increases in rents and are often low paid workers who simply cannot afford to pay water charges. They understand that - there is a mass protest on 21 March - non-payment will defeat water charges. If the Minister is in favour of what Irish Water states is most likely to happen, will he admit that it is punitive? Tenants who already face bullying by landlords, increased rents and very difficult situations are faced with having the money to pay water charges stolen from their deposits.

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