Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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I propose to takes Questions Nos. 1390 to 1392, inclusive, together.

The Water Services Acts 2007-2017 set out clearly the arrangements in place for the delivery of water and wastewater services by Irish Water, and for the scrutiny and oversight provisions that apply in respect of these arrangements.  Responsibility for the independent economic regulation of the water sector is assigned to the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) and the CRU is required to perform its functions in a manner that best serves the interests of customers of Irish Water.

Under the Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013, and since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has been responsible for charging for the cost of connections to the water and wastewater network.  The Act of 2013 provides that Irish Water shall collect charges from its customers in receipt of water services provided by it in accordance with a water charges plan, to be approved by the CRU. Section 22(5) of the Act provides that a water charges plan may provide for charges in respect of the provision of services connections to premises.

In line with a direction issued by the CRU, Irish Water currently continues to apply the same connection charges for connecting to the public water and/or wastewater network as were applied by local authorities on 31 December 2013. In practice this means that some 57 different connection charging regimes, with over 900 different connection charges, currently continue to apply as each local authority had its own method for calculating connection charges, with different cost structures and customer classifications and differing approaches to service delivery.

I understand that in 2016 the CRU requested Irish Water to submit a proposal for an enduring Connection Charging Policy for customers seeking a connection to the network. In January 2018, the CRU held a public consultation on the development of the policy for domestic and non-domestic connections to Irish Water’s network, known as a National Connection Charging Policy. The Policy will be aimed at developing a more harmonised methodology for connections to the public water and wastewater network.

In an information note published on its website on 2 August 2018, the CRU indicated that the time-line for publishing its proposed decision on Irish Water's proposed National Connection Charging Policy has been extended, while indicating that it now expects to publish its proposed decision  in the fourth quarter of 2018. The public will be invited at that stage to comment on any additional information included further to the public consultation process, undertaken earlier this year, before the CRU makes its final decision in the matter which it anticipates will be made by the end of 2018.

The CRU as regulator is independent in this matter and will come to its own independent assessment of the appropriate Water Connections Charging Policy, having considered the views of interested parties through the public consultation process.  As Minister, I must respect the statutory powers and functions which the Oireachtas has conferred on the CRU in this matter.

Details of the average connection fee charged by Irish Water for mains and sewerage for each local authority area in 2016, 2017 and 2018 are an operational matter for which Irish Water has responsibility. It may be helpful in this regard to know that Irish Water has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. The team can be contacted via email at oireachtasmembers@water.ie or by telephone on a dedicated number, 1890 578 578.