Paddy McHugh (Galway East, Independent)

This motion is about the introduction of a national waiver scheme for domestic waste charges to apply to householders with low incomes. That is exactly what the motion is about and I fully support it because it is appropriate and urgent, requiring the immediate attention of the Minister to introduce such a national scheme. It is regrettable, though, that almost everything, including the kitchen sink, is being brought into the debate on this succinct motion. By ignoring the motion's parameters, speakers have undermined its focus to a degree and allowed the Minister and Government to muddy the waters and obscure its urgency. The central tenet of the motion is the urgent need to introduce a national waiver scheme, because the situation is so chaotic throughout the country and is manifestly unfair and inequitable.

My own County Galway is an example. In the Galway city area waste is collected by the city council and a waiver system applies. In the Galway County Council area the waste collection system is privatised and no waiver system applies. That shows the total inequity of the system. People on low incomes or social welfare in Galway city get a waiver while the same category of persons in Galway County Council's functional area cannot get a waiver. That is the clearest way I can find to explain the inequity. The Minister and Government must act immediately to introduce a national waiver scheme. Otherwise, they are complicit in supporting a gross act of inequality that impacts on the most vulnerable in society. It is just not good enough for the Minister to say it is a matter for the various local authorities because there is considerable doubt as to whether it is legal for councils to provide waiver schemes in their functional areas if the waste system is privatised.

There may be a view in Government, and perhaps the Minister shares it, that people in the anti-bin charges campaign and those totally opposed to waste charges are headbangers and consequently cannot be allowed to succeed or be given any concessions. That is another example of where issues are being brought in to muddy the waters. The motion, let us be clear, is calling for the introduction of a national waiver scheme. The reason the waiver scheme is being sought is that there are people who genuinely cannot afford to pay their waste charges. They are not necessarily opposed to paying them in principle. They are simply people on low incomes or on social welfare who have not got sufficient means to pay the charges. Just because of their location they find themselves lumbered with waste charge demands while their neighbours in the adjoining local authority have waivers. The Minister has direct responsibility in this area. He and the Government have a moral responsibility to remove this inequality in our society. There is no way the responsibility may be shifted on to local authorities. The Minister should act now.

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