Water: Statements
Dail Éireann — 2026-01-21
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Réada Cronin (SF), Kildare North

I really welcome the opportunity to speak about Uisce Éireann because we are at a serious crisis point in terms of infrastructure in this country. For years, underinvestment by successive Fianna Fáil- and Fine Gael-led Governments has put us in the situation in which we now find ourselves.
In my constituency of Kildare North, water supply and infrastructure are under severe pressure. I have heard from constituents about the low water pressure in parts of Hazelhatch and Celbridge without any warning. Those in the upper floors of apartments had no water at all for years. Since the improvements were made, the upper floors of apartments do not have the proper water pressure. They face particular difficulties at the weekend due to the high demand. This is a result of the lack of investment from the Government and Uisce Éireann in our water structure. We have ageing pipes that cannot stand the continuous demand for water in large parts of the constituency. We have ended up in this situation while the Government has ignored our repeated calls to invest in this rotting infrastructure and to provide quality water services to those who need it. However, that has not been the case in so many other parts of my constituency. We have had repeated outages in Leixlip and Maynooth as well, on the Celbridge Road, where the pipe constantly bursts, which is hampering the ability of residents to go about their daily lives. It interferes with cooking, cleaning and other daily essentials. This has repeatedly left people frustrated with the lack of action from the Government. People are really frustrated about this. The quality of life around the country is decreasing, between low water pressure, frequent blackouts and unreliable transport.
What will happen to our water infrastructure when the population of Kildare North explodes in the coming years, as it is expected to do? The Government has failed massively to properly plan in areas of north Kildare. Massive property developments are going up with no supporting infrastructure. The pipes are already breaking at the seams according to the reports of repeated leaks, as the population expands. How will our creaking water infrastructure survive the population boom in Kildare North? We need immediate, planned multi-annual investment in our water supply and water infrastructure to ensure that not only will homes be built, but they will be accompanied by the necessary infrastructure.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-01-21/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-31T01:00:51+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-21