Dáil debates

Wednesday, 27 April 2016

5:45 pm

Photo of Peadar TóibínPeadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly today falsely framed the debate on Irish Water by saying that only water charges could build the investment necessary to provide for safe drinking water and the infrastructure to deal with wastewater. This is clearly not the case. Water quality and the structure required for it are simply based on investment. The source of that investment is not the key determinant of the quality of the water or the quality of the infrastructure. He identified the massive problems within that infrastructure, including the boil notices in Roscommon and the effluent flowing into the sea. However, what he identified was the legacy of under-investment by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. Those problems exist today due to the fact that those two parties have not invested in the infrastructure.

The Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly also stated that if one takes the investment for Irish Water from the Exchequer it will compete with health, education and housing funding. However, health, education and housing have competed very unsuccessfully under Fine Gael and the Labour Party with cuts to the incomes of higher income earners and cuts to the USC. Those three issues are already the poor relations in the Government's investment priorities. If one seeks an insight into the Labour Party and Fine Gael's prioritisation of investment, just look at the level of investment they already give to infrastructure in the State. Ireland has one of the fastest growing populations in Europe. It also has one of the fastest growing economies in Europe, yet Ireland is second from the bottom with regard to infrastructural capital investment. That demonstrates the priority of investment with this Government.

We wish to have a functioning water distribution system. If one looks at the manifestos of all of the major political parties, Sinn Féin was to the fore regarding the level of investment that would go to infrastructure and water in the coming years. Sinn Féin is the party of infrastructural investment.

We have been calling for a proper debate on this issue, and a vote on a motion on it, since the election. In all of that time Fianna Fáil has frustrated us on it. It appears that it flip-flopped very recently, for strategic reasons, in its negotiations with Fine Gael. That should not be the case. The debate should be on the basis of democratic mandate alone. The reason the Dáil has been in democratic lock-down for the last 61 days and the reason that Fianna Fáil has failed to allow this debate is that it is seeking wriggle room with regard to any U-turns it needs to make in its negotiations with the Government. That should not be the case. The issue of democratic mandate and how it affects the Dáil should be primary.

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