David Cullinane (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We must be conscious when making big decisions like this that they will impact on some families more than others. Some people can afford to pay a little more and as such the water charges will not be a huge deal for them. However, too many families have been asked to pay too many charges. We are told every time we come into this House to debate the introduction of a new charge that it is only ¤4 or ¤5 per week, as was the case in respect of the household and septic tank charges and the cuts in social welfare payments. However, account is not taken of the cumulative effect in this regard, which was studied by the ESRI.