Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
LOCAL AUTHORITIES HAVE given €424.5 million to Irish Water to date. A further €14.5 million is expected to be paid to the utility this month.
In 2014 the Local Government Fund’s (LGF) budget provided for funding of €486.5 million to Irish Water for water-related expenditure previously incurred by local authorities.
The majority of operational expenditure at the semi-state company has been taken from the LGF, which historically provided councils with finance for funding some of their day-to-day activities, including elements of water services costs.
€121.5 million was paid to Irish Water by 11 March, with this increasing to €424.5 million to date.
Environment Minister Alan Kelly revealed the figures in the Dáil recently, in response to a parliamentary question asked by Independent TD Catherine Murphy.
Kelly said the remaining €47.5 million allocated is being paid directly to local authorities in respect of water-related loan recoupment costs.
Prior to this year, capital funding for public water services was provided from the Department of the Environment’s Water Services Investment Programme and Rural Water Programme.
Kelly said that, a result of the introduction of Local Property Tax in 2013 and the establishment of Irish Water, the local government funding model has changed considerably in 2014.
The minister added that it is believed the subvention to Irish Water in 2015 will be about€399 million.
Speaking in the Dáil yesterday, Kelly said the budget for Irish Water paying commercial rates next year is €59 million. He stressed that local authorities would not lose any money in this regard.
The minister defended the fact that the water metering programme was underestimated by €107 million: up from €431.6 million to €539 million. He said this was because the estimation was based on non-domestic examples and so “wasn’t comparing apples with apples, or oranges with oranges”.
When Socialist Party TD Paul Murphy asked if council tenants could be evicted for not paying the charge, Kelly said he didn’t “envisage” this happening.
Murphy told Kelly the Government’s revised water charges package would not be enough to quell public anger on the issue.
“Threats aren’t going to work, the baby carrot won’t work. Your water charges will be defeated,” Murphy stated.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Anything that will relieve queues inf doctors’ surgeries and take pressure off the hospitals should be welcomed with open arms.
Why are the government dragging their heels on this. Is there an ulterior motive?
kaaaaaaaaching..!!!!!.
@Aidan Mcguire: MMR is free to the public.
@Sean O’Dhubhghaill: So pharmacies do not charge the public funded Health Service…..Right?
@Phil O’ Meara: No. Wrong. But I would expect them to be paid for their time, training, investment, etc.
@Phil O’ Meara: It cost the public funded health service to do the vaccinations anyway, so subcontracting should not be a problem once they are not gouged by the pharmacists which I doubt. As they already have the other vaccinations contract.
The unnecessary covid vaccine did untold damage to people’s confidence in the system. Didn’t get that vaccine for the reason that I was never going to get any serious symptoms.
I am, however, vehemently in favour of vaccinations against serious illnesses like measles, meningitis etc and encourage all my family and friends to get them. I think an admittance on the behalf of governments that they got the covid one wrong would go a long way to restoring confidence in the really essential and tested vaccines.
@James Groden: yawn
@James Groden: Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, So you do not believe in covid, can I introduce you to people that got it and flew throught it. Others that were extremly ill and are suffering Long covid or people who lost family to it.
Your choice, there are thousands of people who can tell you THE TRUTH.
@James Groden:
Dopes like you had blood on your hands after Covid. That vaccine saved 1,000s of lives.
Another bonanza for the pharmacists.They made a fortune from the covid vaccines.
@Willie Marty: They got paid for doing a job and fulfilling a contract.
@Gary Kearney: Ah! Do I hear a pharmacist coming out of the woodwork.Ye got paid to do a job all right at £40 to £60 a jab.
The Spanish flu infected an estimated 500 million and killed an estimated 20 to 50 million “twenty times the population of our island so vaccination has at best held pandemics of devistation at bay for almost 70years from a virus that is particularly evil around children and the elderly.. taking vaccinations are a choice. viruses are indiscriminate.
here are some horrible illnesses almost totally eradicated from the western world by vaccines,
Smallpox.
Rinderpest.
Poliomyelitis (polio)
Dracunculiasis.
Yaws.
Malaria.
Hookworm.
Lymphatic filariasi
leprosy
mumps,measles,rubella.
never heard of them ?
“look them up and you would swallow your vaccines needle and all”..and for those who choose to turn a blind eye let’s hope measels spares the other eye ..
@Liam Meade: Crazy part is people think those viruses are gone. They are not. They are there and if you are not inoculated, then you can catch them. The results have nit changed over the years. They still are deadly.
@Gary Kearney: You’re right. Part of every city’s disaster planning is factoring in the sheer amount of unhoused people who will be exposed to disease from filthy floodwaters and no sanitation. People in America still catch bubonic plague on hikes in vast national parks. Leprosy, rabies, TB; they’re all still out there, preying on anyone who has no resources to fight them off. Modern countries should be ensuring they don’t spread. No one should be that run down in modern Ireland.
@F Fitzgerald:
When you take in people from God knows where with no documentation or passports this is what you get.
I saw it coming before they saw it coming
The Magical Mystery Vaccine is hoping to take you away
Hoping to take you away.
@Ray Dunne: Yeah, I can never get rid of my bag of vaccines at parties.
@Jimmy Wallace: Roll up,
That’s an invitation.
@Ray Dunne: So I spend all day Sundays doing the lot myself. Then I do be in bits come the Monday and I’m deep in the hole to the corparations. A vicious circle.
@Pól Pot: What are you on and can you share it.
@Gary Kearney: Wouldn’t have a clue, but yeah, come meet in my hospice. I’ll dose you up good. Ye better have money on ye as Merck, GSK and Sanofi don’t mess about.
@Jimmy Wallace: that’s the best way to be in this crazy Country of ours,any of us with common sense,can see there’s something not adding up here,I do not believe any migrants and I’m including Ukraine in that,have ever been vaccinated,they are not part of the EU,Ukraine, African Countries,it’s about their personal wealth in power,its time the EU Countries to stop giving billions every year too these 3rd world Countries,even the Covid enquiry the government aren’t talking about it,coz so much fraud went on,they want the Election over 1st,it’s no wonder the normal people here in Ireland,are either drinking too much,smoking weed,doing hard drugs,or getting prescription from the Drs to keep us doped up.i hope u had a great session,and God Bless u,may u have many more…
Why not do it in schools like they done when i was young
@Fran Mooney: I would say because the MMR was/is normally given to children at one year old with a booster at four years at times matched to the child’s birth date so mass vaccination in schools wouldn’t be necessary.
This campaign however is in response to the recent cases that have been reported. It was practically eradicated here but there are adults here who would not be vaccinated for one reason or another or have immunity if they’ve had measles as a child.
@Fran Mooney: Sure the schools already double as polling stations – and chemists have online appointments and adult sized chairs for us!
Vote no
have your say