Michael Mullins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The net price of €60 per annum for a one-person household and a net charge of €160 where there are two or more adults in the house is not an unreasonable charge for good clean safe water for families. This family charge of €3.30 per week compares very favourably with the €15 per week that families on boil notices in County Roscommon are paying for bottled water, as I discovered during my recent canvass of Roscommon during the by-election campaign. Thankfully as Senator Kelly informed the House, my neighbours in County Roscommon will soon have that burden lifted from them with the huge investment that is being made by Irish water in bringing the water infrastructure up to a proper standard. A good clean reliable supply of water is as critical for citizens and for business as is electricity. It is scandalous that the last three Fianna Fail Governments failed dismally to invest in this vital infrastructure. This was during a period of unprecedented growth and healthy public finances.