Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Tá sé náireach ar bhealach go bhfuil an Bille seo á chur tríd na Tithe inniu in aon suí amháin. Ní chóir nach ndéanfaí mionscrúdú ceart ar chuid de na himpleachtaí a bhaineann leis an mBille. Is cinnte nach é Sinn Féin atá ag cur moill ar an reachtaíocht seo. We need to be clear that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are the parties to blame for the delay in bringing this Bill forward to the Houses and in the making of the payments that are due. The Bill was due to be published in June but it was delayed so the pantomime of the Fine Gael leadership contest could take place. It was then due to be published and passed in July but squabbling in the background between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil delayed it even further. This is crucial because it proves Fianna Fáil's fingerprints are all over the Bill. It wanted to make sure that it could design a Bill that would, on the surface, end water charges, yet leave a mechanism in place for their return. Many people will rightly deduce that a Fianna Fáil return to power may well equal a return to water charges. If it was such a big issue during the last election campaign and helped Fianna Fáil to win back many seats, why did it not completely abolish the water charges?