Proinsias De Rossa
Ceist:18 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government his views on the comments made by a person (details supplied) in which he suggested that his Department was using public-private partnerships to force local authorities to hand over control of public water to private operators and that this would inevitably lead to the introduction of water charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18647/00]