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Minister Coveney Private Members Speech on water charges

Go raibh math agat a Ceann Comhairle. I wish to move the Government’s amended motion.

I am pleased that the House is having this debate this evening. Issues relating to the provision and funding of the delivery of one of our most important natural resources have commanded much political debate post the general election. It is, therefore, opportune to detail in my first contribution to private members’ business in this Dáil term, the actions the Government will take to ensure that this Oireachtas is in a position to take an informed and considered decision on the enduring funding model for our public water and wastewater services.

Legacy problems with the system
The debate begins here today and the context should be our striving to achieve high quality, secure and sustainably funded water services. I would like to remind the House of the condition of the public water system when the previous Government decided to establish a single, national utility.
945,000 people were dependent on drinking water supplies requiring remedial action
almost 20,000 people were on boil water notices
49% of all water produced was lost on leakage
Dublin, our capital city, which should have had a spare water capacity of 10-15%, like most European capital cities, had a spare capacity of 1-4%
Major drinking water schemes such as those in Vartry in Wicklow and the Lee Road scheme in Cork, were antiquated and in need of significant modernising
44 urban areas throughout Ireland saw untreated sewage going into rivers and seas, posing a major risk to public health and the environment.
That is a snap shot of what we knew about at the time. Irish Water then began to uncover new legacy problems as it began to map assets and compile data. By the beginning of last year, it had identified 156 wastewater treatment plants that were overloaded. 70% of sewers were in need of repair. The public water network had 58,000km of water mains, over twice the average length per head of population in England and Wales, and significantly higher than what was thought to be there. The problem of insufficient spare capacity was not confined to Dublin – one-third of water treatment plants did not have sufficient headroom capacity. Those treatment plants form part of infrastructure that has an average age that is twice that of infrastructure in Europe.

Why did we have these problems? Put simply, it is because we are guilty of having under-invested in water infrastructure and services for decades. The capital allocations for vital water and wastewater projects and upgrades competed and more than often lost to other more pressing and tangible investment requirements such as for roads, schools and hospitals. We had these problems because we had thirty-four local authorities providing services and infrastructure on a sub-national basis, defined as they were by dis-economies of scale in procurement and network and asset management. This resulted despite the dedication, commitment and professionalism of local authority staff in often financially constrained circumstances.

A new approach was needed. Without it our water services would continue to be deficient putting at risk security of supply, protection of public health and the environment and the water needs of our citizens and businesses alike. For this reason, Government established a single, national utility to deliver water services and infrastructure, one that could plan and invest on a whole-of-asset base and national basis.

Progress to date
A Ceann Comhairle, since Irish Water became the national water utility in January 2014, it has made significant progress in addressing some of the problems I have referred to.

By the end of 2015, Irish Water had delivered 20 new water treatment plants (new and upgraded) and 49 wastewater treatment plants (new and upgraded). 500 kilometres of pipework has been repaired or replaced.

For too many people, particularly in Roscommon, the reality of having to boil water before using it for drinking or cleaning had become all too familiar. For the residents of Castlerea, for example, boiling water before use was a regular daily occurrence from November 2009 to June 2013. Last year 17,300 people in Roscommon no longer had to boil water coming out of their taps. This is real progress and is making a difference to people’s lives; progress in which Irish Water’s expertise and work has been instrumental.

The number of people dependant on water supplies listed on the EPA’s ‘Remedial Action List’ of works requiring remediation has reduced significantly. From 945,000 two years ago, it stands at about 800,000 today. Dublin’s spare water capacity has increased from 1-4% to 10%, a welcome move towards the 15% target of Irish Water.

Investment through metering
Through the 835,000 meters installed by the utility, Irish Water has been able to identify customer-side leakage and offer householders repairs under the ‘first fix repair’ scheme. By the end of February this year, some 39.5 million litres of water per day had been saved through this scheme and domestic customers’ repairs arising from leakage detection through metering. To put this in context, the entire water needs of our neighbouring county of Wicklow in one day is 34 million litres. It makes far more sense to save existing water than to build new plants without addressing leakage on both the public mains and customer sides.

The metering programme has also been crucial in the identification of possible lead piping in householders’ properties. Irish Water is helping to implement the Government’s strategy in reducing public exposure to lead in drinking water. It has written to 34,000 households informing them of the likely presence of lead piping in their properties and provided them with customer advice on dealing with the issue, including public health advice from the HSE.

New approaches to asset management and maintenance
In parallel with increased investment Irish Water has introduced new approaches to asset management and maintenance. It plans investment consistently across its asset base rather than on the basis of large-scale, one-off investments. This approach, including the use of new technologies, is being rolled out across major projects such as the Ringsend wastewater treatment plant upgrade.

As well as savings on capital projects, Irish Water is reducing day-to-day expenditure. Year-on-year, Irish Water has reduced operational costs by 7% since 2014. It is standardising the way operations are conducted and implementing new initiatives to bring down costs. Among these savings is an expected €30 million in procurement efficiencies between 2014 and 2016.



Funding of Irish Water
Some of this progress arises from the innovation and national approach adopted by a public utility. However, increased investment is also critical. In 2013, local authorities invested approximately €300 million through the Water Services Investment Programme. This year, Irish Water expects to invest some €550 million in the network. This represents an 83% increase in investment in just three years. As a result new water treatment plants are coming on stream and major projects such as the Cork Lower Harbour Project are now being delivered – this investment will secure quality drinking water supplies and will contribute to ending the reality of raw sewage discharging straight into our rivers and seas.

I will shortly establish an Expert Commission to examine and make recommendations on the sustainable long-term funding model for the delivery of domestic water and wastewater services by Irish Water. A Special Oireachtas Committee on the funding of domestic water services will debate the Commission’s recommendations and ultimately this House and the Upper House will consider and decide on the future of charges. This process should take no longer than 9 months from the end of June this year. I ask that the House afford the Commission and the Special Oireachtas Committee the space in this 9 month window to independently put the facts and funding issues before the Oireachtas. That is why the Government’s amending motion must be supported in this debate – important decisions which affect every citizen in this country should not be taken in the vacuum that will exist until the Committee’s recommendations are put to this House.

The House must acknowledge the significant level of investment that Irish Water is making. It is imperative for all sides to ensure this investment can be sustained, and that the €5.5 billion in capital investment that Irish Water needs between 2014 and 2021 to deliver the commitments in its business plan is made available.
Without consistency of funding, the legacy problems – of poor water quality, inadequate wastewater treatment, high leakage levels, lead pipes, and antiquated infrastructure – will not be addressed, nor will our supplies be secure against the pressures of a growing population, an expanding economy and a changing climate.

Referendum on public ownership of water services
A Ceann Comhairle, the issue of public ownership of water services is one on which people have strongly held views. Water is fundamental to our everyday existence; it is often taken for granted – we turn on the tap and out if flows! It is critical to life, our public health and our economic progress and prosperity. The Irish public have consistently espoused the notion that water services, and indeed the national utility, should not be subject to market forces nor should people’s access to water be at the mercy of private commercial interests owning or running water services for profit.

In 2014, the Government reinforced the legal safeguard against any future privatisation or semi-privatisation of the utility . The Oireachtas legislated for a prohibition on the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government from initiating a legislative proposal to privatise Irish Water or to sell any share held by the Government without the prior approval of a majority of voters in a plebiscite on the proposal, and without both Houses of the Oireachtas passing a resolution approving such a proposal.

I can fully understand why this is such an important issue for many people. However, I believe that the approach to public ownership in the opposition motion is flawed A blanket enshrining of public ownership of services would not take account of the private water assets in our water sector such as those of group water schemes and those citizens with their own private supplies. There may be unintended consequences. Public ownership of our national utility and this precious national resource is protected without the need to amend the Constitution.

I do accept, however, that there is a need for greater public engagement and dialogue on public ownership of water services and water as a national asset. Again, I hope that the next nine months will provide the space for engagement and a rational debate on the future funding of water services. I believe that the Public Water Forum will play an important role in helping us work towards creating a shared national vision for this critical resource and its collective public ownership into the future.
Shortly, I will establish an external advisory body to help build public confidence in Irish Water. The new statutory body will advise on measures to improve the transparency and accountability of Irish Water. It will provide published advice to the Government and give quarterly reports to the Oireachtas committee on the performance by Irish Water on the implementation of its business plan. Cost reduction, efficiency, infrastructural delivery, improvements to water quality, leakage reduction and responsiveness to the needs of communities and enterprises will be key issues for the body. I believe its work will contribute to the balanced debate that is needed on the future of water services.

Conclusion
A Ceann Comhairle, tonight’s debate will, in reality be the beginning of a debate spanning several months as the work of the Expert Commission and the Special Oireachtas Committee continues. Let the debate be rational, reasoned and respectful. We have an obligation to deliver high quality water services for all. I will ensure that they remain in public ownership. We all want a public water system that will sustain families, our economy and our communities into the future. I hope we can focus on what unites us and debate with an open meind solutions to the issues of disagreement around funding. We can then make an informed decision in 2017. . I look forward to debating the funding of these services after the 9 months ‘suspension of charges. For that to happen, the Government’s amending motion before the House tonight must be supported.

Thank you.