Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 1224: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason that he did not support the decision taken by the United Nations General Assembly to declare access to clean water as a human right; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34004/10]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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On 28 July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on the human right to water and sanitation. The resolution was adopted following a recorded vote of 122 in favour to none against, with 41 abstentions. Following careful consideration Ireland, along with seventeen of our European Union partners, took the decision to abstain from voting on this issue.

Ireland is committed to the full realisation of all human rights, and to the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals, including that of reducing by half, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation. Ireland closely followed the negotiations on the draft resolution sponsored by Bolivia and supported suggestions put forward by the EU that, in our view, would have balanced the text and allowed the General Assembly to reach consensus on this very important issue. Unfortunately many of the EU suggestions were not taken into consideration and we did not feel that we could support in its entirety the final text presented to the General Assembly.

In 2008, the UN Human Rights Council adopted by consensus a resolution which recognised the existence of human rights obligations relating to access to safe drinking water and sanitation. Ireland supported and co-sponsored that resolution. The Human Rights Council appointed for a period of three years an independent expert whose mandate includes the clarification of the content of human rights obligations, including non-discrimination, in relation to access to safe drinking water and sanitation, in cooperation with and reflecting the views of Governments and relevant United Nations bodies, and in further cooperation with the private sector, local authorities, national human rights institutions, civil society organisations and academic institutions. This process being conducted by the independent expert, which Ireland supports, has already produced some valuable insights into the issues involved. The process is based on inclusiveness and aims at allowing the emergence of a consensus within the international community.

The Bolivian-sponsored resolution presented to the General Assembly bypassed the Human Rights Council process, thereby prejudging the outcome of that process. Ireland remains convinced that the only way to achieve real progress on access to safe drinking water and sanitation is to maintain consensus within the international community and we are committed to continuing to work in that direction with EU partners and the wider international community.

Ireland through the Government's overseas development programme works with central and local Government in our Programme Countries, with civil society groups and with multilateral organisations to make progress on the achievement of MDG-7 to "halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to basic drinking water and sanitation".

The 2006 White Paper on Irish Aid commits Ireland to "support activities across the programme to increase access to water and sanitation". Ireland recognises that sustained and equitable access to water is not only a life saving intervention in humanitarian responses but also critical to address the complex and multi-dimensional nature of poverty and vulnerability especially issues around child mortality, food security and gender equality. In 2008, Irish Aid invested approximately 15% of its funding to support water and sanitation activities in least developed countries.