Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

I share Senator Ryan's aversion to the concept of privatising water. If there was ever one innovation in public administration that was introduced in our nearest island and which we should never emulate, it is privatisation of water supplies because it has been a disaster. I was happy, therefore, to accept amendment No. 55 on Committee Stage in the Dáil which inserted an additional provision in section 27 to provide that any function of the Minister or of a water services authority under the Bill may only be transferred to another party provided that democratic accountability for the function concerned is maintained.

I also moved amendment No. 86 to provide that, notwithstanding the contracting out of particular water services to a third party under section 40, the contracting water services authority to whose benefit the service is being provided will still retain responsibility under this Act for ensuring it complies with our requirements. The purpose of this amendment was to put beyond any doubt that the introduction of a DBO arrangement for the delivery of water services on behalf of a water services authority could enable the water service in question to be privatised, in other words, to prevent the DBO system becoming a way for local authorities to wash their hands of their responsibilities and move away from it.

Those of us who served on local authorities have all had experience of what happened when waste management was privatised and how officials in some councils were very anxious to get rid of something. Councillors did not knowingly consent to this happening, but it will not happen now.

Amendment No. 70 was inserted into section 31 on Report Stage to prohibit a local authority from entering into any agreement which would allow the transfer of the assets of a water services authority or infrastructure into private hands. This further strengthens the Government's commitment to retaining the provision of water services in the local government sector and the Bill is now fully proofed against privatisation of water services. Any proposal relating to privatisation would have to be provided for under further legislation and it is a concept to which the Government and I are vigorously opposed. A bad mistake was made on our neighbouring island and we should never follow that route.