Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The reason is that Deputy Martin's party always supported the concept of contributions for services, including water. Fianna Fáil went to the extent of having a €400 charge in its proposition until it saw the people to Deputy Martin's right shifting ground, after which that party said it did not want water charges, at least not for the present. Now, Fianna Fáil wants to restore the situation that applied before with 31 local authorities.

I welcome the Irish Water business plan. It sets out a €5.5 billion investment plan to 2021 so that all of the challenges and difficulties that were apparent for many years can be dealt with. The plan includes, for example, the elimination of all boil-water notices, making safe the supplies that are currently at risk for 940,000 people, ending the practice from 2015 of continuing to pump raw sewage into our rivers, harbours and seas at 44 locations throughout the country, there for all to see, a reduction in the amount of leaks from 49% to under 38%, and an increase in the fresh water capacity for Dublin city in particular where it is currently balanced on a knife edge. The business plan published this morning sets out the structure by which this will be achieved, including making operational savings of €1.1 billion over the period.

Irish Water has achieved reductions in numbers because of natural wastage and people retiring. One of the reasons was to reduce the waste or duplication of having 34 separate water authorities which were not of a similar high standard serving the people of the country. I understand that the business plan targets a 7% year-on-year efficiency in the inherited cost base culminating in €1.1 billion in savings, which is the equivalent of a 40% reduction by 2021. Irish Water has set out that it sees a sizeable reduction of up to 1,200 with a primary focus on the operational local authority staff engaged under service level agreements. Irish Water points out that it may be necessary to have a voluntary scheme in the course of those years.

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