Standing charge for water likely to be under €50 a year

The annual standing charge for water will be €50 per house, or less, with the average yearly bill expected to come in below €300, The Irish Times has learned.

And the free water allowance provided to children will be more than double that for adults under the Government’s plans for water metering, according to senior Government sources. They said this was designed to ease the burden on families, especially those with teenagers.

The annual standing charge applied to all households will not be based on a percentage of water used but will be fixed at a specific value for all homes, which sources last night said would be €50 or under. There will be no connection charge.

This morning, a special Cabinet meeting will consider a water charges memorandum from Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan, the final such meeting before the Easter break. The push to settle the water charges issue comes amid anxiety in Government about the loss of political focus since the bailout exit last December.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny led a discussion at the regular Cabinet meeting yesterday on the need for the Coalition to regain the political initiative.

First bills
Water charges are one of the issues to be dealt with, and householders are due to receive their first bills in the early months of 2015, covering the final quarter of 2014.

The free allowance is proposed to be fixed at 30,000 litres per year, per adult and 65,000 litres per child. Those with medical needs can apply for an additional allowance.

Mr Hogan can also direct Irish Water to ensure that the average bill comes in around a particular price. Sources said this will be below €300 per household.

The Commission for Energy Regulation will consider proposed levels of water charges per litre in June, with a final decision to be made in August.

Households which do not have water meters installed by the time charging begins will be assessed based on similar homes, with a similar number of people in them. Homes without meters will be able to claim a rebate when the meter is installed if their bills are below the assessed charges initially applied.

'Big winners'
"The big winners in this are parents: we are looking to help parents, particularly those with teenagers," a senior Government source said. Mr Hogan is also expected to seek permission for a State subvention of €500 million per year for Irish Water.

Irish Water ranks among several controversies which have put the Government on the back foot since the start of the year and with the local and European elections weeks away, Mr Kenny yesterday led a discussion at Cabinet on regaining the political initiative.

“We need to get on with it and get the basics right more often,” said a senior Government source.

Minister for Finance Michael Noonan is said to have highlighted the need to turn around the political agenda to the Government's advantage.

Other speakers included Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney, Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar, Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton and Minister for Public Expenditure Brendan Howlin.

Amid complaints of a sense of drift, the argument was made that the Government’s performance in recent times had not been good enough. Sources said the thrust of the debate was that Ministers should do more to settle knotty policy questions and produce the required legislation.

The force of the discussion has led to speculation that the Coalition may “reset” its agenda as summer approaches, including a wider Cabinet reshuffle than expected.