Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Thousands of ordinary households are willing us to pass this Bill to suspend water charges formally, but it does not end there. We must scrap them entirely. Let us face the fact that they have been suspended in the hearts and minds of people, as can be seen in the reduction in payments made to Irish Water.

Water charges were the straw that broke the camel’s back. People took to the streets to give elected representatives the clear message that they oppose these charges. People, families and communities have their backs to the wall when it comes to disposable income, and it was a crying shame that the previous Government introduced an extra charge when people clearly could not afford it. We have seen the cost of sending children to primary and secondary education escalate. On top of that we seek to charge them for water, the most vital element to sustain human life. What we must do is educate people on the conservation of water and support them in doing that.

We must find a way to use the funds currently available to make up for the under-investment by previous Governments. We must seek opportunities to reduce waste across the public services, reduce our reliance on outside consultants and agencies and provide a water service that our citizens deserve. It is also of the utmost importance that a referendum is held to ensure water remains in public ownership and is not privatised. We charged people for it in the past through central taxation, so we have a duty to deliver it to them. I hope the water commission will find an alternative to the current regime. However, I look forward to the day when there is a vote on water charges, because I will stand with thousands of families throughout the country and oppose them. It is in that context that I am supporting this Water Services (Amendment) Bill.