James Heffernan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Water is a human right that should be available to all. I am an environmentalist and I am in favour of the conservation of water. I regard water as a very important natural resource that we should not squander in any shape or form and I support the metering of water.

However, the way the situation has evolved creates more questions than answers. Given the whiff of corruption surrounding the sale of Siteserv and while that sale is still under investigation, it would not be right and proper for me to recommend payment to Irish Water. The idea of a boycott of the payment of water charges while those issues remain outstanding is quite commendable. I do not think people have confidence in the way that sale took place. Serious issues and question marks have been raised. It is somewhat heavy-handed and is a strong-arm tactic to oblige the owners of dwellings to provide the details of their tenants to Irish Water. That kind of information is not given to any other utility company, so why should Irish Water be different? It is an infringement of people's rights and I am sure it is an infringement of data protection legislation in some form. I do not know if it would stack up.

Part 4 of the legislation extends the scope of the EPA to impose licensing fees for new and expanding areas. I have raised the issue of the EPA on a number of occasions with the Minister of State and with other Ministers. The agency is protected by an immunity clause to protect it from any kind of prosecution. I refer to cases where the EPA has granted a licence in the knowledge that the person is a known polluter. I have an example in my own constituency of this. I do not know what the EPA is afraid of. If the agency is doing its job correctly and monitoring emissions correctly, there is no reason it should have immunity. I refer to Senator Landy's contribution.A total of 11 prosecutions have been brought forward by the EPA. We know how the EPA operates given the public statements made by its director general. Not one prosecution has been taken against industry. I find this bizarre to say the least. Senator Landy mentioned Enva. Cadence EnviroPower is trying to build a gasification plant in my neck of the woods. This company does not have a great history by any stretch of the imagination. As long as the issue of immunity is still enshrined in legislation, it will not instill confidence in the EPA. This should be looked at and resolved in this legislation. Perhaps we will see on the next Stage.