Sinn Féin has said the extension to the Water Committee deadline is "unnecessary".

The deadline has been extended until Friday 14 April to commission more legal advice.

However, spokesperson on Water, Eoin Ó Broin TD, said he was disappointed at the decision.

Deputy Ó Broin said: "Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil voting together today is a clear attempt to buy more time to reach a backroom deal on the issue. Yet again, they are unable to make a decision and are seeking to kick the can down the road.

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"Sinn Féin has no objection to legal advice. However, all the different legal opinions we have heard to date have been different. This Committee could have and should have met its original deadline. We will now not have final report until April, with the Oireachtas due to vote on the issue in May.

"The Committee doesn't need another month. We need to make a decision, put the matter to a Dáil vote and move on. This delay is just an attempt by Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil to reach a deal that's electorally advantageous to them both."

(CD/JP)