Green Party Environment Spokesperson and local election candidate, Malcolm Noonan, has argued that the Government should hold back from implementing any water charges until the process of installing meters has been completed.

The Government have said that water meters are intended to be part of a campaign to improve water conservation, but without metering water charges can only be viewed as another tax.

Mr Noonan said: "Clearly the Government is in crisis over how to implement the next phase of their austerity agenda, and are floundering once again after the Troika have left them to their own devices. While Greens have always been in favour of some form of charge for provision of water as a conservation measure, I remain a staunch critic of the wasteful body that is Irish Water. From the outrageous spend on consultancy fees, the stripping of responsibility for water provision from capable local authorities, to the €500 million subvention, this Government's plan for water is in tatters.

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"We've been told that water meters are being introduced to promote conservation, but if people are receiving a flat bill irrespective of how much water they consume, where is there any incentive to conserve water? The Government should delay all charges until meters have been installed on all residential and business properties in the state. Only then will we have an equitable system that promotes conservation.

"The Government also need to come clean about how Irish Water is going to survive as a commercial entity if it already needs to be subsidised to the tune of €500 million a year. The cost of replacing our aging water infrastructure is going to be far higher in the future, and people need to know who is going to pay for this when the subvention ends. The current average domestic rate of €250 that is being proposed is undoubtedly a nod to political expediency, whereby some of the meters are put in and the costs escalate rapidly for everyone after that. Will we see Irish Water going to CER year after year seeking radical cost increases to cover their ballooning overheads? Once again, the Government have chosen to delay, defer and deny when faced with an issue of critical importance."

(CD/IT)