Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)

I thank the Minister. We are speaking about the present. There is mayhem in our communities, with four or five different private companies going down the same street on different days. So much for the polluter paying or trying to protect the environment, because this totally turns that on its head. Greyhound, which serves the Dublin City Council and South Dublin County Council areas, charges those in the Dublin City Council area who previously had waivers €100. However, those who will lose their wavers on 31 March in the South Dublin County Council area will be charged only €40. There are huge inequalities and discrepancies in local authority areas.

Does the Minister think the local authorities could have administered a proper polluter pays system without going to the private market? What we have now is a joke. People are very angry about the service they receive from these private companies. Consider Greyhound's record and how it got the tender in the first place. Dublin City Council paid Ernst and Young €250,000 to put out the tender. The question must be raised as to whether the Minister thinks the country would be better served by public waste collection rather than the mayhem of private collection which we have at present. Perhaps the Minister will reply in more detail.

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