Seanad debates

Tuesday, 17 December 2002

National Development Finance Agency Bill, 2002: Second Stage.

 

How does the Minister envisage sewerage schemes and the provision of sewage treatment plants working under public private partnerships? This Bill seems to put a body in place to advise on the financing of public private partnerships. The financing of a such partnerships is only one aspect and, as Senator McDowell has said, if this Bill was only about advice with regard to financial matters, that would be fine. However, there are more aspects to public private partnerships than finance. The provision of a sewage treatment works to any medium-size town under a public private partnership gives rise to a situation where ratepayers must pay for part of the extension of the sewerage lines and for the capital upgrading of the sewage treatment works under the polluter pays principle. Under a public private partnership, the ratepayers of a town have not only to pay for the running costs of a project but also the capital costs because there is a clawback under the polluter pays principle. In cases such as this, these partnerships will raise the cost of providing those services throughout the country. There will be an inequitable system because there are sewerage systems in place for many years that are not a capital cost to ratepayers in some towns. On the other hand, ratepayers will have to pay a capital cost for new schemes in the town. One town will have a clear advantage in terms of sewage treatment works. It will be an inequitable system. It does not only apply to sewage treatment systems, but to the provision of water services, etc.

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