A planned ‘excessive water charge,’ which on current water-use trends would be levied on just 7% of households, would be used to fund investment in water conservation measures, according to local government minister Eoin Murphy.

In a letter to Maria Bailey, who chairs the Oireachtas committee on housing, planning and local government, Minister Murphy outlined plans to levy the charge on households that use over 213,000 litres of water a year, which is 1.7 times average household consumption.

The charge would be €3.70 per 1,000 litres of water used in excess of the average. Irish Water, which would be responsible for administering the charge, has proposed a yearly cap of €500 on the charges, which would cover water and wastewater elements of the service.

By comparison, Tesco will sell you two litres of Ballygowan natural water for €1.25.*

Draft regulations prepared by the Minister also allow larger households – those with more than four people – to apply for an additional allowance of 25,000 litres per year for each additional person. There will also be exemptions for those whose medical needs require them to use more water than allowed by the threshold.

* Online price www.tesco.ie ,Tuesday 23rd July 2019.