Simon Coveney is insisting he will NOT introduce any laws to totally scrap water charges, claiming it would be illegal under EU law.

But the housing minister says he hopes the dispute doesn't result in a general election - because the public doesn't want one.

Earlier the Taoiseach hinted that legislation to scrap water charges could be facilitated as long as it was tabled by someone else.

Simon Coveney says there's no need to collapse the government over it:

Earlier Fianna Fáil's housing spokesman Barry Cowen said the government would collapse if Coveney refuses to follow the committee's findings.

He says that's the process Fine Gael signed up for with Fianna Fail, and it needs to be honoured:

Fianna Fáil earlier said the government will collapse if it refuses to implement the findings of the Oireachtas committee on water charges.

But Enda Kenny insisted the government cannot introduce legislation which it believes would break EU law.

The Oireachtas committee on water charges meets again this afternoon to discuss the subject - which now has the potential to bring down the government.

Our political correspondent Gavan Reilly filed this report for Today FM's National Lunchtime News: