Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate Uisce Éireann is not in the Minister of State's portfolio, but where do we start with Irish Water. My county of Cork has had its fair share of dealings with Irish Water. The quality of our water and the response of Irish Water to the problems we have in Cork are utterly shameful. On Monday last, my Labour Party colleagues on Cork City Council met officials from Irish Water. To say that their questions remain unanswered is an understatement. Most of the time, the answers received from Irish Water lack any detail or substance. I will use one example.

My colleague, Councillor Peter Horgan, asked Irish Water about the water pumping stations within the city limits and the cost of maintaining them. The answer he received was lacking in any sort of detail that he could explain to his constituents. No costings, no details and no explanation were given. When a constituent makes contact with me or my office about an issue with Irish Water, there is a dedicated telephone line to contact. We explain the issue and receive a reference number and after that, there is nothing. There is no follow-up or direct answer and nothing for us to go back to the constituent with. Constituents are often told by Irish Water to contact the local authority, whether that is the city council or the county council. When constituents make contact with the local authority, they are told to go back to Irish Water with their issue. There is no inter-communication and, more importantly, no accountability. Nobody is taking the blame for the issues we have. People are genuinely at their wits' end when it comes to water supply.

I will move on to the quality of water in Cork. Three friends of mine live on the Lee Road in Cork. They wake up in the morning not knowing whether or not they will have the opportunity to take a shower or to drink water from the tap. That is just unbelievable. People refer to the "discolouration" of water in Cork but it is dirty water. It is so bad that people are continually buying bottled water to use instead of drinking water.

A father of two children contacted me. He told me:

As a father of two young boys aged four and one, I am in complete fear of what this water may doing to my children if consumed. For years, my family has been forced to buy bottled water at a cost of €25 to €30 per week amounting to €100 to €120 per month, an additional financial burden in an already difficult economic climate.

I have great sympathy for him and his family. We should not be in the situation where families are forced to buy bottled water.

We constantly receive emails from Irish Water about the flushing system. This is a short-term solution to a very much long-term issue. Residents are being told to run their taps until they see the water is clear. That is what is happening in Cork right now. This is disgraceful; it is shameful.

I was born and bred in Mallow. It is my home town. I know what it is like to be on a hard water supply in Mallow. In the estate I have lived in all of my life, Castlepark, we have a hard water supply. I live at home with my grandmother and the number of washing machines, kettles and shower heads we go through is just stark. It is unbelievable. When constituents ask about it, the answer we give them is to put in a water softener. I ask the Minister of State and this Government to put a water softener in place at source. If that was done, it would not fall to every household to put in a water softener. The Minister of State knows as well as I do that water softeners are not cheap, so if every household is being asked to put in a water softener it just is not possible.

I will ask the Minister of State and Government for a number of things. We need to see long-term measures put in place, including the replacement of pipes in all areas of Cork city and not a piecemeal approach to their replacement. I ask the Minister of State to explain to Irish Water that when a public representative asks genuine questions, the answers they should be given should be substantial, concrete and have substance. Public representatives should be able to go back to their constituents with answers to their issues.

I also ask the Minister of State about the possibility of creating a digital platform where residents in different communities in different areas can log complaints in their area which would provide a clearer picture for Irish Water instead of people wasting time on the telephone and receiving reference numbers but receiving no solutions or answers. A digital platform makes sense.

Importantly, as we are a party of workers, I highlight the fact this is not about Irish Water workers - the men and women on the ground who are doing the work. I have genuine sympathy for them carrying out their work on a daily basis and more than likely moving to different locations as complaints come in. They have no definite duty on a day-to-day basis. The Minister of State and I know this is wrong and needs to be rectified. We need to work collectively across the House to rectify these issues.

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