Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the members of the Regional Group for their motion and Deputies Canney, Fitzpatrick, Grealish and Berry for their opening contributions and the constructive nature of the motion. It is timely as we go about reviewing our national development plan. They have highlighted the pressure points that Irish Water, as a public utility, is facing. I welcome the views of other Deputies on this important area as we outline plans and actions the Government is intending to take.

Our Shared Future, the programme for Government, sets a high level of ambition around sustainable water management and contains more than 30 commitments specific to water matters. These commitments are directed towards overcoming the deficits in our water infrastructure which impact on the provision of safe and secure drinking supplies and, as mentioned by Deputies, strive towards achieving sustainable development, including housing provision, in both rural and urban Ireland.

Significant progress has been achieved over the past decade on institutional reform in the approach to the delivery of water services in Ireland, including on the overall governance and practice of water protection. The work continues. A number of significant and complex challenges remain for our water services. Irish Water, backed by record Government investment in water infrastructure, is well placed to develop the systems and services Ireland needs to serve our citizens in the 21st century.

Irish Water continues to evolve on its journey to becoming a world-class water utility. A modern, effective, environmentally compliant and efficiently delivered water service system is central to all our national interests. Working together since 2014, Irish Water and our local authorities have made real progress in implementing nationwide systems to provide a coherent approach to water services. Irish Water has become firmly imbedded as a national public water utility with strength, delivery and management of water services and investment.

Irish Water delivers its services in accordance with the statutory water services strategic plan which was published in October 2015. This sets out a high-level strategy over 25 years to ensure the provision of clean and safe drinking water, effective management of waste water, environmental protection and support for economic and social development. In turn, Irish Water's strategic funding plan 2019 to 2024, outlines its multiannual strategic business planning funding requirement of €11 billion, which comprises €6.1 billion of planned investment in infrastructure and assets and €4.9 billion in operating costs.

Robust governance, accountability and oversight are in place, with economic regulation of Irish Water by the Commission of Regulation of Utilities and environmental regulation by the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, while An Fóram Uisce and the water advisory board have specific roles to oversee the performance of Irish Water.

I acknowledge we have a way to go to ensuring our water and waste water infrastructure, including the distribution and collection networks, are fit for purpose. Water and waste water infrastructure in Ireland has suffered years of underinvestment and the condition of the national asset base was deteriorating faster than the investment could keep up. These underpinned interventions require Irish Water, as a national public utility, to periodically rebalance its investment portfolio to ensure it is maintaining existing levels of service and supporting growth capacity, while addressing the compliance and capacity challenges.

The cost of the provision of domestic water services provided by Irish Water is met by the Exchequer from my Department's Vote, with more than €1.3 billion being provided in 2021. The Government's substantial and sustained investment is vital to address the existing infrastructure deficits, ensure compliance with EU directives, accommodate population growth and build resilience in the face of climate change.

Maintaining a high level of investment in the water sector over the future investment cycles is vital in order to achieve greater environmental compliance; overcome challenges in water and waste water treatment infrastructure; address unacceptably high water leakage rates; service future housing and development needs; and ensure security of supply across our country, all of which, to be fair, have been raised by the Deputies.

Significant reforms are still required. At the end of February, my colleague, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy O'Brien, published a paper agreed by Government, entitled Irish Water - Towards a National, Publicly-Owned, Regulated Water Services Utility. The policy paper sets out the Government's expectations on the next steps of the water sector transformation. This transformation will ensure Irish Water plays an effective and efficient role in underpinning the implementation of Project Ireland 2040, including our objectives under the national development plan.

Continued high levels of investment in our water services will be a priority for Government under the revised national development plan which is in preparation. This motion is key in setting out the priorities which we need to bring into that development plan.

In terms of alignment with the national planning framework, the second leg of Project Ireland 2040, Irish Water takes account of and supports ongoing work on the implementation of the framework, including the regional spatial and economic strategies. It liaises closely with local authorities to inform ongoing reviews of county development plans, local area plans and its waste water capacity registers, which help ensure the right development is supported in the right place.

A key programme is Irish Water's small towns and villages growth programme 2020 to 2024. This will support the growth in smaller towns and villages through an investment fund of €100 million, with the approval of its economic regulator, the Commission of Regulation Utilities. Irish Water recently announced details of 13 waste water treatment plants across 12 counties, which have been selected for upgrade under this programme. These projects are now commencing design, thus investment under the programme will now begin to deliver and accelerate.

The engagement of relevant local authorities will ensure timely deliver of these badly needed upgrades around the country. An increase in the supply of housing, the need for which is agreed on by all sides of this House, is critically dependant on the provision of supporting water services. This growth programme will now begin to deliver the necessary capacity in small towns and villages to support broadly needed housing development in the right place for all our communities.

It is important to acknowledge the vital role played by the rural water sector in delivering high-quality water services to areas outside the public water system. Nearly one fifth of Ireland's population gets its water from private supplies consisting of private group water schemes or private household wells. Just under 200,000 people are served by almost 400 private group water schemes throughout the country. More than 170,000 rural households depend on their own private wells for their domestic water needs. Group water schemes provide an invaluable service to families, farms and businesses in rural Ireland.

This Government is committed to supporting the rural water sector by providing equity of treatment and financial supports, equivalent to the public water sector. For capital investment needs, the multiannual rural water programme provides funding certainty for the continuous improvement of water services. The programme has provided more than €70 million over its current three-year cycle which runs to the end of 2021.

An annual subsidy also provides funding towards the operational costs for group water schemes and the supplying of water for domestic use.

I have set out in broad terms the Government's water services policy programme, focusing on the water sector transformation and the significant funding for domestic water services, including the relevant programmes and supports for our rural water sector. Our sustained investment in infrastructure is required to ensure continued supply of good-quality drinking water and appropriate treatment of water to ensure continued social and domestic development. We have made demonstrable progress in addressing the huge challenges we face as a Government and will continue delivering strongly on the commitments made in the programme for Government, particularly those underpinning housing development.

A number of Deputies have raised the infrastructure needed to unlock so much potential in our towns and villages up and down the country. Deputy Canney made a point on our rural housing policy. As Minister of State with responsibility for planning, and coming from a large rural constituency, I really understand and appreciate how important rural planning is because it consistently takes up of 25% our output of housing. We are currently reviewing the sustainable rural communities document which has not been revised since 2005. That will be an important key to ensuring that delivery is protected and that those who live in rural areas can continue to do so in a sustainable way. That is very important and I am acutely aware of it because of the constituency I occupy. As I said at the outset, the Government is not opposing this motion. We look forward to working with our colleagues to try to improve water services for all, both rural and urban, and to unlock the key potential inherent in our towns and villages to ensure this national development plan review will again support Irish Water in the delivery and working with this key public utility.

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