Mark Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister back to the House. I share previous speakers' concern about the lack of fairness in the section. The lack of regard for ability to pay, which also arose with the property tax, is most unfair aspect of the section. As other Senators noted, it is unfair that Members of the Oireachtas and people on higher incomes are being charged the same as everyone else. The fact that someone may have a swimming pool, five houses, five bedrooms or five bathrooms makes no odds to the Government.

This is all part of the Government's U-turn. I cited the statement made by the former leader of the Labour Party, Deputy Eamon Gilmore, that he did not believe in metering or flat charges. We see both, in black and green, in the Bill passed by the Dáil, which provides that charges of €160 and €260, respectively, will apply to the principal private residence occupied by one adult and two or more adults.

Many of the technical questions raised by citizens or customers, as they are described by the Government, have not been answered because the entire scheme has not been thought out. The installation of meters as a conservation measure is a fig leaf that is of no real consequence. A previous section provides that the Minister may make amendments as he or she sees fit, as is always the case in legislation. This section does not provide for justice or fairness but creates a get-out clause for a Government that has already done a U-turn. While the current proposal is to charge citizens a small amount for a short period, in 2018 Irish Water will start charging people by the litre to make money. Moreover, the Government will not be able to borrow money to build water infrastructure.

I find most disturbing the assurance we have been given that this is the best that can be done on the issue of privatisation. We receive assurances that a flat rate would not apply and investment would be made in infrastructure. A flat rate has been introduced and investment in infrastructure is unlikely to take place. The Government will be lucky to reach the point where it covers the cost of this colossal monster.

According to the Irish League of Credit Unions, 500,000 people do not have any money at the end of each month. People simply do not have the €260 or €160 they will need to pay the charge. Previous speakers described the water charges as the straw that broke the camel's back. Irish people were not late to the game in this regard. While people in Greece and Spain vented their anger on the streets and it looked good on television, the numbers involved were not especially large. What we are seeing here is a mass mobilisation, with people gathering in large numbers in Dublin and many other parts of the country to engage in peaceful protest. This protest will also be seen at the ballot box because promises were broken. Deputy Gilmore deserves to be mentioned again in this regard. He stated he did not believe in charges for water because it is a necessity that should be delivered as a public service. A flat household charge, he added, would be unfair as it would not discriminate between houses with five bathrooms or none, and metering, he continued, would be unworkable. To give the Deputy some credit, he was right about metering. It is unworkable. Metering will be a cash cow and bonus for those at the top and a burden for the 10% of the population who do not have any money at the end of each month.

Those at the top - the elite and members of the commentariat - are doing all right and getting by.

They will be able to pay the bill, and that is why it is not of concern to them. I refer to the Ministers who say it is only €3 a week and what is the problem; €3 is a lot of money for someone who does not have it. It is the same in Italy, in Spain and in Greece, with regard to those at the top, those in the media, those in the establishment, those in positions of power and influence in the Civil Service, the public service, the unions, the employers, the politicians. Those at the top are fine and are happy with the status quo. They are happy to put this burden on people because they think "It is only €3 a week," and anyone who disagrees with them is obviously irrational and unreasonable. It is not irrational and unreasonable for people to protest when they do not have the money because of all the other incremental charges that have been put in place in recent years. Yet those at the top - as we have seen in the most recent budget - are the ones who seem to have less of a burden placed on them. Some of my colleagues have made the point that they would regard it as fairer if more were paid in tax than paid to what has turned out to be the monster of Irish Water, which, depending on who is doing the figures, may never pay for itself and will only pay for the bonuses of those who are at the very top, who are quite happy for the fiasco to continue.
However, it will be the ballot box at the next election that will give us the answer to the comments that politicians have made - they were true when they made them - about metering being unworkable. Some said they were against the flat charge and said that water is a public service. When one considers that all those politicians and their parties will be before the electorate-----