Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion. The problem of waste, waste charges and the application of the waiver scheme is always contentious. The issue of waivers concerns me particularly with respect to the financial difficulties waste charges can create for pensioners and others on low incomes. As usual, this comes back to an issue of fairness. I accept we cannot continue to produce waste without covering the costs of dealing with it. We cannot continue to bury or export our waste. Recycling and re-use is the way forward. The polluter must pay and many cases have been highlighted tonight where people are known to dump rubbish. With the advent of charges for waste, some people have a tendency to go to the countryside to dump their rubbish. That is happening on a far too regular basis and it must be condemned. We should be far more severe on people who carry out such scandalous activity.

Bring banks and bottle banks have proved very successful. Some local authorities have dumps overflowing with bottles, clothes, papers and so on. Local authorities should be to the forefront in setting an example for the community. There is a realisation across the country that we want to keep our environment clean. In South Tipperary County Council, we have run a tidy schools competition. There is a special prize-giving day which is extremely successful. It sends out the right message to young people, who look forward to the day when their school can receive a small token of appreciation for being kept tidy. This creates a healthy environment for our younger people and is something that should also be encouraged nationally by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

The theory that the polluter must pay, like all good progressive tax systems, must be based on the ability to pay. Large families, the sick and the elderly sometime struggle to pay waste charges and we cannot ignore them. There is a problem when the service is provided by operators and people in vulnerable situations cannot avail of such private operators. It is very unfair that they have to pay the full amount and we need to tackle that. If this motion does nothing else tonight it should highlight that situation. We need to look after the old and vulnerable people who looked after the environment in more difficult times. I fully support this motion.

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