Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

The then Minister, former Deputy Spring, went on to discuss the general issue of waivers or the mitigation of charges. He made the point that the Bill did not attempt to "define the grounds" where waivers would apply or "to restrict the exercise of this power" as this was an area where the decisions might best be based on local knowledge or experience. The Minister's views are as valid today as they were in 1983.

Indeed, the Minister, when he held this portfolio, was so convinced that local services and the associated charges should be determined locally that he provided in the 1983 Act that centrally imposed statutory restrictions on the level of charges should be removed. In short, the Minister, in the 1983 Act, which was the basis for introducing service charging for water, waste and other services, provided that the issues regarding the non-payment of service charges were a matter for local determination and decidedly not a matter in which the Minister of the day should interfere.

There was much wisdom in the then Minister's contribution, so much so that 13 years later another Labour Party Minister for the Environment returned to the theme.

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