Joanna Byrne (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Today, we put forward a detailed motion on housing and critical infrastructure. Examples were given and statements from bodies involved in the delivery of homes, such as Uisce Éireann, the Irish Home Builders' Association and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, were given, but the Government's amendment to this motion is a rinse and repeat of its response to all motions in this new Dáil term. It ignores what has been said, it ignores the examples given, it ignores expert opinion, and it gives lots of flowery words, all the while failing to address the key issue of failure by successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments to invest in critical infrastructure, in particular in water, leading to delays in the delivery of housing.

In 2017, a burst water main in Drogheda, the largest town in the country, caused significant water outages for eight days throughout south Louth and east Meath. Imagine a town with a population in excess of 55,000 people having no water and those people having to queue to fill water bottles for homes and businesses for this length of time. I spent nearly nine years on Louth County Council before being elected to this House, and throughout that time there was a constant air of dread hanging over us regarding issues with water infrastructure and water outages, amplified, obviously, by this huge water outage the year before. In fact, as far back as 2018, on a site visit with Irish Water to Staleen water treatment plant in Donore, just outside Drogheda, to hear about a new pipeline that was under way, my colleagues and I were alarmed to be informed the new pipeline, when completed, would not export any more than the 30,000 cu. m of water per day the old one had been delivering.

This was at a time when 5,000 houses were planned for construction in the northern environs area of Drogheda alone, bringing a surge of 20,000 in population. There was not the foresight to increase capacity even when major works were under way. The construction of these houses is under way at present and I have major reservations as to the reliability of this infrastructure to meet demand. Despite having banged this drum for years and challenging Irish Water-Uisce Éireann to provide clarity, no assurances have been forthcoming. This is symptomatic of the decades of underinvestment by the Minister's Government in the replacement of outdated infrastructure and in future-proofing to ensure capacity needs are met across key areas of expansion with regard not only to water, but also to electricity and planning. This lacklustre approach from the Government is stifling the growth of our towns, cities and villages and holding them back from meeting their full potential. The time to act is now. Housing lists will continue to grow, house prices will continue to rise and the Irish people will suffer because of the Government's continued intransigence.

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