Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Fianna Fáil has tabled amendment No. 1 to the motion. The new arithmetic of the Thirty-second Dáil allows those of us on the Opposition benches an unprecedented opportunity to have a real impact on Government policy. Last week, Fianna Fáil proved that with a Bill to address the exorbitant interest rates thousands of struggling mortgage holders throughout the country are paying. This week, Sinn Féin has reverted to type. Rather than come forward with meaningful legislation, it has sought to score political points. Rather than engage, it has sought to ignore. From the comfort of the sidelines, the party continues to snipe while others try to come forward with real solutions.

This deeply misleading motion wilfully ignores the progress made on this critical issue in the minority Government arrangement between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. No sooner has Sinn Féin sought a path forward than it dives for cover in the nearest ditch. The simple fact is the motion has no legal force and requires legislation to be enacted. That legislation, as a financial measure, must be facilitated by the Government. Fianna Fáil has secured that in its arrangement. We have ensured the effective end of water charges, if that is what a majority of the Dáil wishes. All this has been accomplished through negotiation and compromise. The motion ignores that progress, and rather than participate, Sinn Féin chooses to play to the gallery. In contrast, Fianna Fáil will do its bit in drawing a line under the failed water charges regime and ensuring we have a water network that is fit for purpose. We will do this with practical actions, not platitudes.

The history of water charges is a sad chronicle of failure by the previous Government. From the grotesque scale of its €172 million in set-up costs, including €80 million in consultancy costs, to the dizzying series of U-turns the then Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly, underwent in October 2014, it has been a disaster from start to finish. The then Government implemented more than a dozen U-turns in as many days, entirely undermining its own plans. The result has been a collapse in public confidence and the failure to pass the EUROSTAT test, the reason Irish Water and domestic water charges were established in the first place. The water charges figures for 2015, long before the election result, are a testament to the Government's failure. In 2015, only 53% of bills were paid with annual revenue of €144 million. A total of €100 million was spent on the so-called water conservation grant, with €41 million spent on administration costs and another €25 million on water meter interest repayments. On this basis, the State lost €22 million on its water charges regimes in 2015.

Recently in the Chamber, Deputy Kelly, as is his wont, tried to grab headlines with wild claims of environmental treason when we had set forward a clear path to end charges. His claims smack of nothing short of financial illiteracy. The State is losing money from water charges - at least €22 million last year. Not an extra cent has been invested in the water network. I can understand how, after going through the seven stages of post-government grief, the Deputy may have got his figures mixed up. However, the maths are simple. Losing €22 million a year to impose a charge that is causing massive political disruption in communities throughout Ireland is financial madness and political stupidity. His comparisons and those of others with the abolition of rates in 1977 displays the selective amnesia typical of the Labour Party. He forgets that Fine Gael and the Labour Party in power began the move to abolish rates. Similarly, 40 years on, their incompetent handing of water charges in power has irrevocably destroyed them as a legitimate charge.

It is now time to draw a line under this issue and move to address the other important challenges we face as a country. The path forward to end water charges is clear. Water was only one of a number of pressing issues to be addressed before Fianna Fáil agreed to facilitate a minority government. However, the party demanded that the issue be resolved in detail or else the Government would have immediately collapsed under motions such as this. We are committed to ensuring a stable Government and we were not willing to risk that by leaving the issue unresolved and subject to such political opportunism.

Under the terms of our agreement, as outlined in our amendment, water charges will be immediately suspended for nine months with the opportunity for an extension. In the interim, an expert commission will report on the best method to fund water services and then a Dáil committee will make recommendations. Sinn Féin, I understand, had agreed to the idea of a commission but appeared only to be willing to put one in place once it had decided its conclusions. The Government will facilitate whatever option a majority of the Dáil endorses. This is required under Article 17 of the Constitution to accommodate Bills that have an impact on the Exchequer. In this light, the motion carries no legal force and would require legislation to be enacted. The result of this agreement and what matters to people is clear: the end of water charges will be decided solely by the Dáil.

It is important to deal fairly with those who have paid and who have not paid. Earlier, before he went on "Morning Ireland ", Deputy Pearse Doherty reached deep behind the couch and found €144 million to repay water charges. In reaction to an opportunistic Labour Party Bill, Sinn Féin was not to be outdone and completely reversed its previous position on repayment in the blink of an eye. Actual policy requires a bit more thought than knee-jerk U-turns and magic money before a radio show. Fianna Fáil is committed to equality of treatment for all bill payers. The issue of whether and how to repay people and pursual of non-payment will be addressed by the Dáil committee. Ordinary home owners who played by the rules and paid their bills will not be left worse off in comparison with those who refused to pay.

The motion refers to a new public water and sanitation board to replace Irish Water. It has stated there will be no job losses and, therefore, one presumes Sinn Féin is looking for a simple name change. The minority Government arrangement reached with Fine Gael ensures Irish Water will be subject to a new oversight body and will remain in public ownership. This will keep down costs, help ensure greater efficiency and prevent any privatisation agenda Fine Gael may harbour. Ultimately, this is what people are interested in, not new names or reorganisation. If the Oireachtas feels a constitutional amendment is necessary to protect water in public ownership, Fianna Fáil is willing to explore it. In the first place, we need to clarify the wording of such an amendment having regard to private wells and group water schemes. Simply putting in place a date without a wording is putting the cart before the horse. However, I assure the House that water services will remain in public ownership under Fianna Fáil's watch.

We now have a clear route to ending the failed water charges system. It is in the hands of the Dáil to decide its future. The motion is simple grandstanding. However, there is no substitute for negotiation and compromise in bringing forward real solutions. Water charges are coming to end, our water network is safe in public ownership and we will ensure we have a water network fit for purpose in the 21st century. I commend the amendment to the House.

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