Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Therefore its expenditure is coming from revenue, so the opportunity cost is no longer valid. It will not be valid for the duration of this Government, however long it lasts.

The Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Varadkar, spoke about the absurdity of providing water on the basis of need. I made a point yesterday - although he was not in the Chamber for it - that if he wants to see why water should be provided on the basis of need and not on ability to pay, he should consider our health system. We have a health system where access is determined by ability to pay so people are denied access to life-saving vital medical treatment. It is on exactly the same basis that we argue for universal health care, free at the point of delivery, and universal access to water, free at the point of access, rather than on the basis of ability to pay.

The key element missing from this debate, particularly on the Government side, is what happens when the provision of water is commodified. I made the point yesterday and I will do so again that the consequence will be water poverty. Increasingly, in countries with regimes of paying for water, water poverty is increasing. This is not just an issue for the developing world. In countries like Poland, for example, which is not so far from here, water poverty is a real issue for as much as 10% of the population.

The purpose of the motion is very clear. It is not proposing a repeal Bill and it cannot result in the automatic abolition of water charges; we know this because we are precluded by Standing Orders from doing that. We are doing what every other political party has done with Private Members' time, which is to put a matter of public concern on the table. We urge Deputies to vote on the basis of the promises made during election campaigns and we are seeking to give expression to the democratic will of the people. By doing so, we will put pressure on those who could to introduce legislation to abolish the charge, to abolish the failed entity that exists and to put in place the start of a process that will create a proper public water and sanitation utility while protecting its public ownership in the Constitution.

We have heard much today about how the old system resulted in the decrepit water system that exists. Our water infrastructure is in such bad shape because parties in this Chamber - and Deputies - have for decades refused to invest in water-----

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