Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That, pursuant to Standing Order 177, Standing Order 131 is modified to permit an instruction to the Committee to which the Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014 may be recommitted in respect of certain amendments, for which it has power to make provision in the Bill in relation to:(a) amendments to the Water Services Acts 2007 to 2014 to provide for a number of matters including:

(i) requirements for the owners of dwellings supplied with services by Irish Water;

(ii) provision for an approved housing body, responsible for the payment of water charges in respect of a tenant, to claim the water conservation grant on their behalf;

(iii) registration by approved housing bodies of certain dwellings in receipt of services from Irish Water;

(iv) the payment of water charges upon the sale of a dwelling; and

(v) the establishment of a database of water services to dwellings;

(b) provision for a number of changes to the Waste Management Act 1996 to strengthen the regulatory regime for household waste collection, introducing new provisions for the waste permitting process, and imposing new obligations on waste collectors and other facilities accepting household waste including separate collection and the mandatory application of pay by weight;

(c) amendments to motor tax legislation; to provide in secondary legislation, for the purpose of determining eligibility to a particular rate of motor tax or an exemption from motor tax, the physical characteristics required of a vehicle, the uses to which a vehicle may be put and the supporting documentation that may be required; and to amend the definition of a motor caravan to allow the physical characteristics required for eligibility to the motor caravan rate of tax to be determined by secondary legislation; and

(d) provision for the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to make the required payment from the Local Government Fund to the Exchequer in 2015, as envisaged in the 2015 Revised Estimates Volume;and to change the long title of the Bill to take account of these provisions.

I am tabling this motion to permit a number of important amendments to the Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014 in the areas of local governance, finance, waste management, motor tax and water policy. These amendments have been well flagged and provided in writing to Deputies within the required time frame as provided in Standing Orders. Indeed, the water-related amendments mentioned here were announced by my Department on 6 May, all of nine weeks ago at this stage.

Before we get into discussion on the motion and the individual amendments in due course, I would like to take this opportunity to outline the importance and timeliness of these amendments. I am bringing forward very important changes to the Waste Management Act to comprehensively reform our system of household waste collection. Government waste policy is articulated in A Resource Opportunity - Waste Management Policy in Ireland. This sets out a number of commitments relating to reforming-----

See this speech in context