Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There are people in my constituency of Kildare North who cannot move into their homes because of water supply issues. That is not a problem just for people in my colleague's area.

I make my contribution as a member of the climate committee in the week of COP27 and the growing public awareness on this island and globally that water, and access to it, is something we can no longer take for granted. I attended a public meeting in Maynooth last night. My constituents across north Kildare are in no doubt that we face a changed world. We are ready to play our part in it. My constituents know, as do all of us in this House, that even in the most developed and sophisticated parts of the world, water shortages arising from drought, caused and made worse by climate change, are becoming a feature of modern life. It is not just heat and drought that are the problem. The catastrophic flooding that has arrived in Europe can damage pipes and systems and make water supplies unusable.

We are told that by 2030, the gap between global demand and supply of fresh water is expected to reach 40%. Water is going to become a hot political issue in the EU, just as it already is in other parts of the world, such as in the Nile region. While COP27 is taking place in Egypt, it is worth remembering the long-running issues between that country, Sudan and Ethiopia regarding the huge hydroelectric dam on the River Nile. The Horn of Africa is gripped by famine, the graphic details of which we heard about at a recent meeting of the climate committee in which the issues of loss and damage played a big part in the discussion. This year, the US envoy for the Horn of Africa met with Egyptian officials to find a way, under the African Union, to guarantee the long-term needs of all the people, in various countries, living along and relying on the River Nile for their water.

Water is access. It is food, health and wealth and it also contributes towards peace and power. Politically, I am 100% opposed to the privatisation of water. If the Government does not give us our referendum and if it wants to go back to water protests on the street, the women of Ireland are well ready for it. If we look at the privatisation of energy, transport, healthcare and childcare, we see we are playing with fire if we privatise water. It is essential to life.

See this speech in context