James Heffernan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Coffey. The establishment of Irish Water has been a mess from the start. The public has not accepted it from the get-go. The issues have all been mentioned here previously. The squandering of millions on consultancy fees and bonuses drove people mad. People were pulling their hair out when they heard the different revelations about Irish Water. During the European Parliament and local elections people gave their answer on Irish Water. Those elections took place when meters were being installed outside people's houses and people gave their answer loudly and clearly to the Government. However, the Government has not listened. It may have listened a little with the changes we have seen implemented, but it needs to listen considerably more.

The opposition to water charges and the protests against them grew organically from the start with people taking control themselves. I would be somewhat sceptical and wary. I question the sincerity of many people who have subsequently jumped on the bandwagon. However, people have not accepted water charges and do not want them for many different reasons. Those in the Right2Water campaign do not believe in paying for it anyway. Other people are sick and tired of debacle after debacle and of broken promises. People's disillusionment is at an all-time high. We meet it every day. People have spoken about how they come across it on social media. We hear it on the streets and in every clinic we hold.

The Minister, Deputy Kelly, was thrown in at the deep end. He was thrown in to clean up a mess that the Department was left in. I am not sure if it was a very wise move on behalf of the Labour Party. I certainly would not have been offering my services to clean up that particular mess, but that is what has happened and he is trying. In fairness the efforts he has put in place to sweeten the medicine are not good enough.

The conservation grant giving €100 to everyone is a joke. Has there been a proper independent analysis of the cost of the grant? The figures I have indicate that the total cost will be €165 million. That is money that will come out of the Department of Social Protection. The idea of setting up Irish Water in the first place was that Irish Water and the water services would not have to compete for Exchequer funding when it came to budgeting for social welfare or investing in schools and hospitals. If the Minister of State visits any accident and emergency unit in the country he will see the problems on the ground owing to lack of investment.

Some of that €165 million will go to people who have a private well and never even asked for that money. It is bananas in the extreme. It was news to me to hear in the Minister's speech - this is a good one - that €100 will be given to people in nursing homes. It is a cynical throwback to how business was done by previous governments. This is what has people annoyed. They do not see any change from previous administrations in how the Government has been behaving itself.

I have figures on Irish Water that were supplied to me. I do not believe they were addressed in any of the Dáil debates - I certainly could not find evidence of it. Total costs and everything else are based on 100% of people complying and signing up to Irish Water. It will be nothing in the region of that. If 100% of the people suddenly wake up and decide there is no need for these protests and decide to sign up to it, €65 million is all that will be left for Irish Water. The money available to Irish Water to invest in maintenance, upgrades and whatever else needs to be done will decline very significantly. If for instance half of the people do not sign up and the costs are revised, there is potential for Irish Water to be in the red.

We need a referendum. I do not like the idea of a plebiscite - the idea that we would give the plebs their say. We need a referendum so that it is enshrined in the Constitution that Irish Water will not be privatised. If the figures I have are anything to go by there will be enormous pressure on any Government to seek private investment in Irish Water.

I do not know if the Bill will pass tonight. If it does I certainly will listen intently to the various proposals made tomorrow. As previous speakers have said, perhaps a 90-day period of reflection might not do any harm.