Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. I have not yet spoken on this Stage of the Bill because I did not want to repeat exactly what was said the last time. I thank the Minister of State for giving the same answers today with regard to poverty proofing as he gave when the questions were raised by most Senators on Second Stage. That people who cannot afford to pay will not pay is an important issue. I thank him for repeating it again today, which is why I have not spoken on it today.

Section 5(1) states: "The subsidiary shall be known, in the Irish language, as Uisce Éireann and, in the English language, as Irish Water." I compliment the Minister of State on continually referring to it today as Uisce Éireann and not referring to it as Irish Water. An article in today's Irish Independent did not refer to Uisce Éireann, which may be because the Act has yet to be passed and it is becoming commonly known as Irish Water. It is under the auspices of Bord Gáis Éireann, which is an Irish language name. Given that the Bill states: "The subsidiary shall be known, in the Irish language, as Uisce Éireann and, in the English language, as Irish Water" and presuming that stays as it is, it will only be when writing in Irish that one would use "Uisce Éireann" and when writing in English one would use "Irish Water".

I ask the Minister of State to change this section to ensure that the name of the company will be Uisce Éireann - it has nothing to do with the Irish language. If the section stays this way Uisce Éireann would only be used when the Irish language is used. It is an important differentiation to make. I have pointed out that "Uisce Éireann" is not being used in today's newspaper. It is important to get it straight: the name of the company is Uisce Éireann. It has been agreed here that Uisce Éireann will be Uisce Éireann. If the company wants to, it may put Irish Water in small print under it on its headed notepaper for people who do not understand, but that is the name of the company as has been agreed.

I congratulate the Minister of State and Bord Gáis Éireann on the appointment of Dr. John Tierney. He has a BA and an MA in public management, and a doctorate in governance. We could not get a man better qualified for the job and not alone for his academic qualifications, which I would regard as secondary to his practical experience. A man with such on-the-job experience is a very valuable asset. We are talking about local authorities and this man knows local authorities inside out.