The Cabinet met this evening to discuss new plans to remove the threat of jail for people who do not pay general debt bills, including water charges.
Under the proposed legislation, landlords will be able to deduct unpaid water charges from deposits.
A proposal to prevent homeowners accessing the proceeds of a property sale until the charges are fully paid was also discussed.
Instead of possible jail time for the non-payment of small general debt those who have bills outstanding may face reductions to their social welfare payments.
Attachment orders may apply to water charges.
Speaking in the Dáil this evening Enda Kenny said the new compliance system would take into account peoples' ability to pay their water charges.
The proposals on debt, which have been formulated by the Departments of Justice and the Environment, were originally due to be discussed by the Cabinet this morning.
However, the meeting was adjourned to allow ministers attend a 1916 Rising commemoration at Arbour Hill.
The meeting resumed at 7.30pm this evening.
Justice Department hopes Fines Act will be operational in six months
The Department of Justice has said it hopes the Fines Act will be operational in six months.
The Act - which allows a court to impose attachment orders and in some cases seize assets for unpaid fines - was passed by the Oireachtas 13 months ago but has not been signed into law.
A department spokesperson said there is a difference between a criminal offence - for example not paying your TV licence - and also general civil debt, which is being dealt with in the Government's proposals.
Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin this morning said it was a "general provision" to apply to all small debts.
He said the idea behind the proposal was that "people wouldn't go to jail for not paying a TV licence and that a plumber or electrician who can't collect a debt owed to them would be able to do so".
He said it was "all-encompassing" and not just related to water.
Mr Howlin added: "We've been looking for some time at ways to ensure those who won't pay as opposed to those who can't pay, will pay their bills."
The proposals on debt collection and enforcement are based on a report by the Law Reform Commission in 2010.
It recommended that those who do not pay their general debts should not be jailed.
Instead the LRC advocated a graduated process of enforcement, which would see attachment orders apply to earnings, but not if they deprived debtors of a minimum standard of living.
Although households started receiving their bills for water last month, the penalties will not apply until after 15 months of non-payment.
Proposals met with broad criticism by Opposition
Anti-Austerity Alliance TD Paul Murphy has said the proposed legislation "is not the game changer in relation to water charges that the Government think it is.
"This legislation appears to only apply to the fines related to water charges not the charges itself."
He said this means people can continue to boycott the water charges as no fines are applied until after the fourth bill in 2016.
By this stage, he said, a General Election will have taken place and any new government will be "put under massive pressure to abolish the charge before any of this legislation comes into effect".
People Before Profit spokesperson, John Lyons described the Government's proposed plans as "a disgrace".
The Dublin City councillor also said the idea that the Government would get landlords to deduct water charges from deposits is "getting landlords to act as boot boys for Irish Water."
Independent TD Mattie McGrath gave a "cautious welcome" to the proposal.
However, in a statement Mr McGrath said: "While any measure which would remove the threat of jail from a struggling family is to be welcomed, I would have strong reservations about the Ministers [sic] real motivation here.
"It is far more likely that this government is pre-emptively moving to avoid the political nightmare of having to jail struggling debtors, thereby confirming its image as debt collectors for the European banks and bondholders", he said.
One Family, the national organisation for one parent families, has criticised the proposed measures to apply attachment orders to social welfare payments.
Speaking on RTÉ's Today with Sean O'Rourke, Stuart Duffin said the proposals were a retrograde step.
Mr Duffin, Director of Policy and Programmes with One Family, said if "is a particularly draconian approach", adding "it is yet another cut for the most disadvantaged families in Ireland."
He said reforms born out of austerity and crisis are not being thought through and the most disadvantaged suffer.
He added augmenting debt management services and early intervention was a better solution.
