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THE IRISH GOVERNMENT has €300 million invested in Irish Water, or 21% of the money committed by the Irish Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) to date.
The ISIF was established in December last year to earn a return for the State on commercial investments and is in the process of absorbing the assets of the former National Pensions Reserve Fund (NPRF).
Those assets were valued at €6.9 billion as at end March 2014.
Given the ISIF’s remit, the obvious conclusion is that Irish Water as a profit-making proposition is seen as a particularly viable one.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie a Department of Finance spokesperson said that all such investments ‘are made on a commercial basis, but you would have to contact the investors themselves [in this case the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA)]‘.
It’s not like a grant system, the idea is to give some sort of commercial return. From that point of view a case can be made for any individual investment.
TheJournal.ie contacted the NTMA and were told by a spokesperson for the ISIF that the investment in Irish Water was a ‘bridging facility’ which was only approved following the provision of a guarantee by the Government.
In making this bridging facility available, the Fund recognised that as Irish Water had not been formally established, there was no clear view of revenue streams.
Therefore the Fund indicated that to provide Irish Water with a bridging facility, a government guarantee would be required.
Fianna Fáil finance spokesman Michael McGrath, who asked the Dáil question of Michael Noonan that led to the provision of the above figures last week, earlier spoke disparagingly of the ISIF investment in Irish Water.
“The fact that the Strategic Investment Fund is being used to prop up Irish Water financially is further evidence of the drain which Irish Water has become on the resources of the State,” McGrath told the Examiner.
It is diverting money away from potentially far more productive uses.
McGrath further claimed that the ISIF’s ‘painfully slow’ progress has thus far shown little evidence of any investment which would make a discernible difference in terms of jobs and growth.
The ISIF’s statutory mandate is to ‘invest on a commercial basis to support economic activity and employment in Ireland’ according to its website.
While the need for the State to provide for social welfare and public service pensions obligations had not abated, fostering economic activity and employment is currently a greater priority and this will in turn put the State in a better position to meet its pensions obligations in the longer term.
Just €1.4 billion, or 20% of the investment fund has currently been committed, while a mere €186 million (3% of the entire fund) has been invested in the last nine months.
Of that €186 million fully €50 million (27%) went to the controversial water utility.
According to the ISIF however the slow rate of investment seen will pick up as the fund ‘sells its investments outside Ireland to fund new Irish investment commitments consistent with its mandate’.
The ISIF currently has a pipeline of over 80 potential investment opportunities generated either from investment proposals received or its own leads.
Trying to make it too expensive to throw away and make it more difficult for the next gov to abolish. The only spongers in this country are the ones in Leinster house
You got it in one. No needs to say anymore. Thats it exactly. Hopefully many many more will read that.
Jaysus, you’re right. That’s after making me very angry.
Explains why any form of protest or campaign of non-payment has them “baring their teeth”!
No, its to beef it up with assets before they sell it to their mates at a knock down price. Their mates then asset strip the company and keep the cash. Essentially, its a clever piece of fraud.
And Fine Gael refuse a 9 year old girl with cancer a medical card,How do they sleep at night.
Indeed Stuart…there is a set routine employed world wide to sell the idea of privatisation of water.
First you run down the existing water service by reducing the funding to it.
Since 2011 funds for the supply of water by Government to councils has been drastically reduced(from 1.2 billion to 435 million)…ie: Roscommon Council in 2011 asked for funds from the Dept of Env to tackle serious problems…they were refused any money to deal with water issues and told to wait until the setup of IW to deal with the problem. This made the council look bad and caused much hardship for 3 yrs to the people of Roscommon who will then be hoping for IW to sort out their problem…IW the hero!.
Next, make the public think they can beat the water charge by giving them a yearly allowance of water and only pay for water above that allowance……..that disappeared quickly!
Next, you threaten to turn people off if they don’t pay……this didn’t work in Ireland because Irish people already pay as 2% was added to VAT and 5% was added to car tax in 1997 specifically for water provision, turning off people could result in a court case which IW would lose.
Next, make it so expensive to run that privatising it makes sense, after all you’ve pumped so much taxpayers money into it…it would be shameful not to try and get the money back for the taxpayer…and you do that by charging the taxpayers who paid for it in the first place!…what a neat trick!
Don’t fall for this folks. Governments should have sole responsibility for the provision of water to it’s citizens as part of its social remit. the provision of fresh water under pins good health.
If a Government sells off everything to private companies then what do we need the Government for? ….to sit around getting paid while saying…”That’s not our problem….speak to the company”
Just look at Detroit……by the end of 2015…40% of the Detroit population will have their water turned off. that’s 3000 people a week being turned off because their water bill went from $40 a month to $160 a month when Veolia took over management of the water and sewage service last year in Detroit.
How could it happen? The USA has the highest amount of low paid jobs in the west….so any increase in basic needs hits the poor fast and hard.
Ireland recently became a country with the second highest amount of low paid jobs in the west(after the USA)…so how do you think water charges will affect our population, any different that the folks in Detroit?
They’ve skin in the game now.. They’re committed.. Sounds like they were walked into his like Drumm walked FF into bailing out Anglo.
Telecom Eireann was the first major fraud that happened in this country, our own elected officials encouraged small first time investors into investing in a dud, cleaning out half million people that were manipulated by the media into believing they were investing in their futures, it was the dawn of rip off Ireland and ushered in era of unprecedented corruption that has gone unchecked ever since. TE was build and paid for by Irish tax payers.
IW makes the TE swindle pale in comparison, they have a scheme in place that will ensure a constant revenue stream by selling back the same water from the treatment plants over and over again, they have charged tax payers on the double and in some cases on the treble to finance its conception and set up, to put assets in place with the sole intention of privatisation just in time to head off into the sunset with a golden pension.
Al Ca problem for government is despite the threats,the bribe a significant number of the population is not falling for the spin.
You took the text right off my fingertips. Horrible individuals masquerading as public representatives.
Nice post Al Ca.Very well put…..
Revenue Stream…love it!
Watch the naked truth:
http://youtu.be/D3mzoECUok0
Alca you are correct in everything you say. I wish that people would just wake up to this reality. Unfortunately, I work with people who have the ‘I’m all right Jack’ attitude :(
Can you imagine the amounts of leaking pipes that could have been replaced at this stage? Would the people of roscommon be still on boil notices?
Dear enda and co., your mates have been handed enough of our money. Take the walk of shame to the park and tell the President its time to go to the polls….
They’d be better off putting that money on a horse.
How do we stop them before they do more damage.
Your right Finton
Shargar
Genius – I don’t know, and that worries me. There are days when I am reminded of the retreating Iraqi Republican Guard burning oil wells and setting landmines to prevent the fires being extinguished as they retreated from Kuwait.
Irish Water a drain on the State?
There are other clichés…
SOS….Irish water has hit an iceberg. Where there is a mess Enda gang will make themselves a few quid.
I hope people reading that article come to realise that it is clearly not about “fixing pipes” but rather to fund the rich.The sooner irish water is abolished,the better.
Yet not a cent of that money is going towards fixing leaks. My parents were going to pay up until this week but the antics of the gardai this week has convinced them to not pay the water charges. How many gardai were sent to the homes of the abusers from the nursing home in Mayo, or have they even been arrested yet for their physical assault of mentally and physically incapacitated individuals. Compare this to the carloads to arrest elected officials. Another own goal in the endless list from this idiotic government!
Call the guards!
Cab, fraud squad, anyone.
There’s robbery afoot, deep rooted, long term robbery.
Right in front of us.
They’re not even hiding it anymore, probably covered by a legal document somewhere.
€300 Million quid. That’s a lot of leaks that could’ve been fixed but not.
IW planning on spending 50million a year on fixing leaks. so there’s 6 years worth right there.
Not only do I want Irish Water to be disbanded immediately, I want all Government Ministers involved in championing this white elephant to pay back the public finances that they have so disgracefully wasted.
It’s our country and our money, not theirs.
we will in a few years time know why all this money is being invested in irish water….when some journalist worth his/her salt will stumble upon the truth.. someone is init up to their neck.
And unless we rid ourselves of FG/FF/Lab, their punishment will be a 6 figure payoff and a golden pension for life.
And that’s the painful truth.
Squandering taxpayers money to squeeze taxpayers in paying more.
Speaking of squandering did mr kennys party pay the monies that were illegally used during the childrens referendum.
Every week its something and Irish water and its never good.
2 billion and counting and not a pipe fixed,,hats off to labours alan kelly only he could fuk it up more than big phil
But..but….the estimate to start up Irish Water was €150 million with a €30 million contingency fund in case things went pear shaped…..what kind of fruit shape costs €2 billion?
An Elite fruit.
No sign of gillhooley or the other gimps to try and gloss this over. Its time for a cull in the Irish political class. If only we had some impartial investigative journalists to expose the whole genesis of this debacle.
Enda fiddles while Ireland drowns.
It’d be cheaper for us all to tap Ballygowan into the public water system at this stage.
Kenny is the new CROMWELL tearing the fabric of our society asunder.
The fabric of society has needed a makeover for a very long time. We have grown used to looking at the same stained wallpaper and being told the same lies from successive governments, first from telling us that we are one of the richest countries on the planet and then being told that there isn’ t a red penny topay for healthcare.
What an UTTER, UTTER,waste !!!!
Time to scrap irish water we are drowning in it.
FF/Greens knew how to waste money and feather their friends nests but FG and Labour really take the prize !!
If this were any other country thousands of people would take to the streets protesting about this, oh wait we’ve tried that!
it’s getting to a very dangerous situation when a government doesn’t listen to its people
They have protestesters rounded up and arrested. Very blue shirt of them
The next national protest is 21/03/2015
It is important the people of Ireland send these wasters a strong message
Spread the word.
Cooking the books.
Isn’t a pity they will never be able to recoup it through the company.
Maybe higher taxes but that seems the only way.
At this rate the setup costs would have paid to fix the pipes and brought all the people on group water schemes into the mains.
Most group water schemes work well without being brought into the mains, so why say that they need fixing.
Because everyone in the country has a right to clean water without paying through the nose.
but those on group water schemes do not pay through the nose. the ones I know of pay very little, get a better quality than the manis. and very little profit is made from it. I say leave them where they are . they are better off not being on the mains.
Muddy waters!
Bloody wasters!
National Demonstration – 21st of March. Please make it your business to show these fraudsters that regardless how much of OUR money they are wasting on this quango we are not paying again. I really thought that FF were a bad bunch but this shower of cynical ba$tards put them in the hay penny place. We have had enough. Not ever bloody paying AGAIN.
Does that also include all the money they gave Irish Water under the table from our Motor Tax payments?
nope. nor all the money they gave them from the LPT
They’re spending our hard earned tax money like it’s going out of fashion.
Well you all know what to do when the next water tax protest is on. I was delighted on the 31jan to see such a big crowd in dublin and hopefully the next march will be twice as big as that one. I went to all the household marches there was only two really good ones the rest were not good but it was then that the people should have got out and showed their strength what a lot of people dont realise is that the power of the people is greater than the people in power
21st March demonstration everyone
Surely the title of this piece should read
Hmmm… the Government is doing a LOT of investing TAX PAYERS MONEY in Irish Water
300 Million ÷ 188 = 1,595,744 call outs!!
I tell you that pipe into Irish water is burst. It’s leaking euros every where.
Please please can we get these Fgers out , killing the country for the sake of their friends in the top positions of irishp!sswater ,
Thus far 3.5billion has been put into this hole since 2013
You could of have fixed all the leaks for that
No, no, that’s perfectly fine, I didn’t want to ever have a pension anyway.
Destroy all parties in election
Is it the governments money or the tax payers???
Has Irish Water become the ould water bucket with a big hole in it?
What a scam, just a shift of money from the public purse to private hands.
Did anyone else notice the little sum of €44 million for the unwanted, unnecessary INCINERATOR for Dublin? And people wonder why the youth of this nation don’t care about politics or even voting.
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