Irish Water is €850 million in debt, Fianna Fáil has revealed.

The Government is also refusing to disclose the costs of the loans.

In reply to a Parliamentary Question from Fianna Fáil's Environment Spokesperson Barry Cowen, Minister Alan Kelly revealed that he has given consent for Irish Water to borrow a further €550m from commercial banks bringing the total level of borrowing to €850m.

The Minister is also refusing to state the interest rates that the Super Quango is paying on these loans so the real cost to the taxpayer is still being hidden.

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Deputy Cowen said: "The Government's need to hide the true cost of Irish Water’s loans is further evidence of the fact that this Super Quango is a colossal failure. We are now in a situation where Irish Water is running at a massive loss and heading towards €1bn in debt, without investing a single extra cent in our water infrastructure above and beyond what was already being spent.

"The Minister's refusal to disclose the interest rates on these huge loans is extremely worrying. It’s difficult to escape the conclusion that Irish Water is paying above the odds and costing the taxpayer even more than we know. And the cost of borrowing is likely to rocket further as commercial lenders witness the low level of compliance from Irish Water customers.

"All of this proves that our water infrastructure should have been left in the hands of local authorities and all the money that's been wasted in setting up a useless, expensive Super Quango should have been invested in water infrastructure at a local level."

(CD)