David Cullinane (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

My point is that the investment plan will be predicated upon whatever Irish Water has at its disposal to invest in capital projects. I will not go over the question of how it will decide which projects get what, but will Irish Water decide how much capital investment to make annually and will it receive a subvention? According to the figures the Minister of State has provided, central government provides approximately €240 million to local authorities for capital investment. I am sure this approach will continue in the early stages following Irish Water's establishment. We are told that the commercial sector pays the full cost for water in, water out and capital investment. Logically, domestic users will inevitably begin paying for that full cost after a time. Is this the logic of setting up Irish Water and giving it control over capital investment? Is it envisaged that the money provided by central government to local authorities for capital investment will be replaced over time by Irish Water charging domestic and commercial customers and undertaking borrowings? At some point, will central government stop funding Irish Water's capital investment or will there always be an element of central government funding that would then form part of investment plans? A lack of subvention for capital funding would determine the level of charges that customers would need to pay in the long term. I am concerned about where this might be heading.