Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

I was surprised to hear the litany that was set out by my good friend and colleague, Senator Darragh O'Brien, aided by some of his colleagues. All it could do is sow confusion, especially as the Cabinet clarified all the major matters on water charging yesterday. We know there will be no charge before 2014 and how precious and scarce water is. We know about the cost of water treatment, pumping water into reservoirs and piping to individual houses. A good service has been provided by the local authorities down through the years in this regard but, as has been said, farmers and businesses are paying for water already. Unless one meets the cost of sinking a well or develops a means of harvesting rainwater, which would also require treatment because of the acid in the atmosphere-----