Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

It simply is not rubbish. It is equivalent to the set-up costs of Irish Water. Basic mathematics shows that the figures put in for Ringsend wastewater treatment plant was €170 million more than what is now being expended. I would encourage the Senator to go down there and speak to the people there. Greater economies of scale, which are possible through having one national utility rather than 31 separate local authorities, has resulted in €12 million in procurement savings in the company’s first year alone. That is a fact. That is not debatable. In relation to how it procures the various chemicals, instead of being done in 31 local authorities, it is done centrally. Through the economies of scale, it has made huge savings.