Irish Water: Over-18s will not be exempt

Irish Water has signalled it does not expect older teenagers to be exempted from charges as it defended paying executives almost three times more than English equivalents.

Following calls for all school-goers over 18 to be allowed the same “free” allowance as children, the new utility said it was bound by welfare rules.

Irish Water’s spokeswoman Elizabeth Arnett said the free allocation was linked to welfare rules where benefits were only provided for those under 18 in education.