Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak to Mr. Conway and Mr. O'Donoghue about the price monitoring group. We have been waiting for nearly a year to look at what is happening in the waste collection market. I have read the report in detail and it is clear there is very little transparency in household waste collection and there is almost no regulation of it. It looks to me like a bit of a free-for-all. I note there were 41 different offerings which is now down to 39. That is hugely complex. If one compares it to the gas and electricity market, one looks at one's bill and can see the exact breakdown of how it is made up, what components are in it and how it is calculated. Why is that not being considered?

The other question I had is about the model. The model we are using is very complex. If one looks at the issues raised about the reduction of 41 offers to 39, with nine different models, it shows how difficult it is. This side-by-side competition is unique in Europe. In the housing estate I live on in Portlaoise, there are three refuse collection companies that come into the small part of the estate where I live and that does not make sense. It is not regulated to any great extent and there is a history of skews in the market and various different things happening.

It is not just about the competition; it is about the way it is structured. Has the group looked at side-by-side competition, where a local authority, for example, Dublin City Council, Galway County Council or Laois County Council, would offer a three-year franchise to companies and that companies would bid for it and the council would get the best deal. There is a very clear similarity in how the companies are operating in terms of the pricing structure. There is very little difference. They all tend to move at the same time. It appears there is a carve-up of areas in some cases. In some estates there are three, four or five companies operating. In larger areas, it appears there has been a carve-up. There may not have been. A way of getting a better outcome for the householder might be through a franchise.

My first question was on transparency and my second one was on the model we use. My third question is on the bin collection. I have raised it with the Minister. The brown composting bin is not available to all customers. Some of the collectors are not providing it. I do not know how much of an examination has been done of that. The purpose of the price monitoring group was not strictly to look at this issue but the Department needs to take it on board. Collection companies are being licensed through the lead authority, which is Offaly County Council. It is the lead authority in issuing licences for refuse collection. It needs to be looked at. If a refuse collection company is getting a licence, it should provide a compost bin, which in most counties is brown. It is brown where I live. It is not available in some places. Parts of the town of Portlaoise do not have brown bins at the moment. Has the group looked at that?

Is there resale of waste? For collectors in the North at one stage there was a resale value on it. Local authorities were getting back some funding from it.