Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome this debate, the reasons for it and the background to it. I acknowledge the right of the Dáil to discuss this issue, especially considering the level of public discourse on the matter as a result of our own talks with Fine Gael on an agreement potentially to facilitate the formation of a Government. One is forgiven for questioning why this specific issue is given more coverage or consideration than the very pressing needs in the provision of housing and addressing homelessness, crime prevention, creating decent jobs, rural decline in towns and villages throughout the country and the massive waiting lists, to name a few of the issues that dog our country currently. I contend that all parties and none acknowledge those pressing needs in those areas. They acknowledge that with an agreed budgetary framework within fiscal rules priorities can be made by a new Government in these areas. An example of the collective responsibility of this new Dáil is in the area of housing where it was agreed by all parties and none to establish an emergency committee to explore the issue within a defined timeframe, consult with relevant sectors and stakeholders, make recommendations to the Dáil and subsequently to turn those recommendations over to a new housing Minister. It is an example of how this new Dáil can help and instruct government.

In 2009, Fine Gael launched the NewERA document which contained the blueprint for a national commercial water utility to deliver water services as a full cost-recovery entity. Fianna Fáil in government, in its agreement with the troika for the provision of necessary funding, included in its potential mechanisms to close the gap of €35 billion between income and expenditure an option on water charging. By the time that Fianna Fáil Government and the subsequent Government closed the gap, water charges had still not been introduced. In effect, the introduction of a charging regime or commercial utility was not necessary or deemed necessary by any EU water framework directive. Fine Gael in government pursued the contents of the NewERA document, in particular the policy that ended up as Irish Water. Without going over old ground in great detail, it was rushed, ill-thought out, ill-advised and ill-conceived. It was most expensive, to put it mildly. It quickly ran out of control and became a runaway train costing billions of euro.

It has cost the taxpayer on the double. It took revenue from the initial household charge and the motor taxation fund and it continues to take revenue from property tax funds. It has left local authorities at a massive loss. Despite all this funding, it is still spending less on repairs, maintenance and capital expenditure than was the case during the years 2000 to 2010. During the course of the passage of the various water services Bills in the last Dáil, there was no regard for the views of the Dáil. There was no space for scrutiny and there was no room for amendments. It was rammed down the throats of the Irish people by the last Government with the largest majority in the history of the State. Subsequently, there were 13 different U-turns by the Government which only served to make the sorry saga worse, more unpalatable, more confusing and more ridiculous. That is why it became the election issue it was.

I accept and admit that it was not the most dominant issue but it was one which has now the ability to strangle and kill this Dáil and cause an election. It is against that background and for that reason that Fianna Fáil sought to be responsible and fair to the people. We sought to play our part in resolving this issue, to take the heat out of it and put a roadmap in place for a resolution, thus allowing us to seek the facilitation of a Government which is the overriding factor that must be taken into account. The overriding background music to the recent election was a trend from people that they now demand, not merely expect, that parties and candidates are true to their word and true to the commitments in their manifestos. Tesco ad politics and commitments on Labour's way over Frankfurt's way have done irreparable damage and must be stopped and put to bed. We made commitments in our manifesto in four key areas including securing home ownership and tackling homelessness, cutting costs for families and improving the services they rely on, creating decent jobs and supporting enterprises and in seeking to bring about crime prevention and support communities. Specifically, in the area of cutting costs, we said that in government we would seek to abolish Irish Water and scrap water charges.

There is no doubt that we did well in the election, but we did not win it. We did not win enough seats to form or lead a Government.

Our over-riding promise was not to enter into government with Fine Gael. There was no outright victory by any party or any obvious bloc. Three times we tried to form a minority Government, lead it and offer a change that we believed people sought but failed to secure one extra vote.

We then had to acknowledge our responsibility by exploring the potential to facilitate Government formation while retaining our independence as an opposition party with the right to pursue the policies contained in our manifesto, as is the right of any other political party or person who has the privilege of representing voters. This allows us to set down our guiding principles. It allows for the potential to give value to the votes that we received and to work with the Dáil in instructing the Government.

We realise that no one won the election but we recognise that the Dáil contains a majority that is against the water charges and the water charging regime that is in place in the form of a commercial utility. Consequently, we recognise the right of the Dáil to determine the future of those. Therefore, it is our duty to ensure that when the Dáil makes such a decision, it does so in full knowledge of the relevant expertise's recommendations on a charging or non-charging mechanism, on whether it should be a public utility or not and on facilities and appropriate statutory oversight to ensure that the work of any public utility is costed and delivered in a way that allows it to be measured against its performance and be adjudicated on by the Members of this House. Market conditions should be appropriately measured against European norms.

This affords Deputies, who were elected by the people irrespective of who they were and where they came from, the opportunity to abolish, or otherwise, water charges or any mechanism for providing water services. It also affords us the opportunity to have an overarching utility that is publicly owned and publicly accountable to the Dáil and, by effect, the Irish people. This is the new sort of politics that people want to see. This is how they want the Dáil to have an input. They do not want us to disregard the result as given just because some will not enter into negotiations or seek to give them the desired outcome of the votes that they cast.

It is a complicated situation that we find ourselves in but it is one in which we have a responsibility to ensure that a Government emanates from it. We do not expect to implement all of the policies in our manifesto because we will not be in government but we will facilitate a Government and allow it to be formed. One of the over-riding issues on which we gained our votes - not all of them but some in cities and large towns - was that of water charges. We have an obligation and duty to put the message to the Government that it cannot impose the will of the last Dáil on this one. That is why we are outside of government but we are giving value to the votes that were cast in our favour. It is incumbent on us and others to take that responsibility seriously and not to use the opportunity that some of the Deputies to my right have used ad infinitum. They will always be on the promise path and never on the decision-making one. However, we are taking our responsibility seriously. This is why we will continue exploring. Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, including this issue, in terms of our facilitating Fine Gael in leading a government. We will take the responsibility and privilege given to us seriously and appropriately in the hope that we can have a better country because of it.

See this speech in context