Ms Una Lavelle:

In the context of the electrical and electronics sector, the compliance scheme was set up to deal with waste. Waste legislation is incredibly strict in terms of the classification of waste. Once it comes into a facility, a person cannot say it looks like it would work, ask for it to be plugged in to see if it will work, and then ask for it if it does work. That is absolutely not what happens. There is a large amount of work, regulations and bureaucracy that would surround a single item once it goes into the waste stream. It is not fair to blame the EPRs completely for this. The way they have been established means they are dealing with waste, so they cannot channel waste back out again. There is no easy way for that to happen. The ideal scenario is to capture it before it becomes classified as waste. WEEE Ireland, the compliance scheme for electrical and electronics, has engaged in training people in reuse. The organisation has been engaged for the past couple of years in supporting training schemes. Not many of the students who have been employed in workplace have gone into sole traders or community enterprises. They have gone back into the likes of the Siemens, Phillips, etc. which is great, because it means these companies are becoming more interested in repair. There is talk of those companies actually looking at leasing models, so instead of going forwards, we are going backwards, where we are leasing our appliances from big companies, which then have a vested interest in making sure it is repairable and that the longevity is the key factor in its manufacture. That is very hopeful.