David Cullinane (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

-----pay another regressive tax that will disproportionately impact on their families. The Government is dipping into the pockets of people who do not have any money to give. This is unacceptable.

The Minister of State claims we are not asking the real question. In his words, the real question is whether this will improve the quality of water services. He claims nothing is being hidden. He used the word "fair". He stated Irish Water could be discussed in the Oireachtas and that our committees could invite people to attend, but this is the Chamber. This is the Parliament. This is where we should make those decisions. Before we sign up to a Bill that allows for water charges, we should have a clear idea about how they will be calculated. We do not know how. The Minister of State is telling us to pass the Bill first, buy the pig in the poke, and we can debate charges afterwards when it is too late. That is not good enough. I would prefer to avoid a situation in which we would be bolting the gate after the horse had gone. Let us ensure we bolt the gate now.