Caít Keane (Fine Gael)

If the Senator will allow me the courtesy of being able to say a few words, he can then tell me who engaged in the speculation. We all know who said what because the media have covered the issue. The Minister has responded loud and clear and given a good insight into what is proposed. The final decision has not been made, but we have been informed about the level of the free water allowance and the Minister referred clearly to the agreement with the European Union and the IMF.

It is clear there is much scepticism among householders who will pay this charge, but many of them are sensible about water and not as fearful. We should respect their intelligence, given that many environmentally friendly people will wonder what we are on about and whether we know water is a finite resource. It comes out of the sky, but it has to be treated, which is not cost free. Those who take this line of argument do not respect the intelligence of the public.

Introducing water meters carries a cost. If this issue had been grabbed by the horns years ago during the construction boom and developers had paid for the installation of water maters, none of us would have to pay anything now. That should have been done, but Fianna Fáil was afraid to do the right thing at the right time when it could have been done easily and developers would have paid for it. The party's Senators should not pretend to be sad about it now.

The Minister referred to the memorandum of understanding between Ireland and the European Union and the IMF which commits Ireland to introducing a domestic water charge no later than 2013. I would like those who oppose this to outline how can the issue can be addressed if funding is not available. A sum of €500 million could be well spent on the poor to provide them with additional facilities. However, I am pleased that funds raised from the charge will be ring-fenced for local government services. Those of us who have served in local government are calling for the ring-fencing of funding to be spent locally at the discretion of local authorities.

When the charge is introduced, households will be able to avoid paying it if they do not squander water. There are two ways of looking at this debate - is the glass half full or half empty? A number of Senators referred to the charge as a stealth tax. I am tired of listening to that assertion, given that this is a conservation and environmental matter and water treatment must be looked on in that light. We do not discuss electricity as if it were free coming out of the ground. We pay for it and the same principle should apply to water metering. The status quo cannot continue because it is costing the State more than €1 billion annually to supply water and provide wastewater services.

Luadh ansin an scéim nua ag Conamara i gCasla agus tá mise an-bhuíoch as an scéim sin. Chosnaigh an scéim sin €15.5 milliún. Cá bhfuair muid an t-airgead sin? That money did not drop out of the sky. It cost €15.5 million to install the new water scheme in Connemara. We have to ensure those who do not have access to treated water are facilitated. We cannot treat one cohort of the population as half citizens and leave them with poor quality water, while treating other citizens differently. Many households pay a water charge currently; therefore, the Minister's proposal is not a new concept for them. We would have more money for job creation and businesses if there was a level playing pitch when introducing charges. We are talking about being pro-jobs and pro-business. We would have more money to put into creating jobs and helping businesses if there was a more fair and equal dividend.

The Minister has said there will be a set allocation. A different Minister, the Minister of State, Deputy O'Dowd, has now taken the Minister's place.