Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

There is one area where we might diverge a little, or perhaps it is just a question of timing. Councillor Doolan said that we do not want to turn the clock back and, obviously, we do not want to turn the clock back in terms of having just one black bin and there need to be multiple bins. Why not turn the clock back in terms of bringing this fully under the control of council-run services as it would have been in the past? People would have experienced that as a good service, they did not have complaints, there were not multiple trucks on different roads, and so on. Obviously, Councillor Doolan is pitching it as a kind of two-tier thing, with one private supplier, and we are then able to have procurement rules, standards and so on. Without question, that would be an improvement. However, why do we not go all the way and bring it back in-house to the councils?

Councillor Doolan might also address the issue of costs. The IPA report states that, basically, the costs would be the same for people. However, I suggest that households would like to hear that costs are going to go away because they are opposed to bin charges. Councillor Doolan referenced rates in the North. I assume people do not want to see rates brought back in the South to replace the bin charges. He might comment on those points.