Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Joe Cooney, a retired city council worker from Ballyfermot, left his bin out this morning and it remains uncollected this evening. Mr. Cooney is not on a gold-plated pension, despite the common perception of public sector workers. On 29 June, he checked his account with Greyhound. He had €21 in credit. Today, when he telephoned Greyhound to see why his bin remained uncollected, he was told that he was short €19. Let us do the arithmetic: that is a difference of €40. When he asked why, he was told that it was because the company had brought in pay-by-weight since the beginning of June and he did not have enough money in his account to meet the weight of the collection today. As a result, the company has left his bin uncollected.

When Mr. Cooney rang the Minister's office, he was told that someone would get back to him. Someone got back to him and said that the companies had introduced pay-by-weight. The Minister said in a statement last week that there is nothing he can do about these companies and their behaviour. I am unsure whether that was a slip of the tongue, whether I am misquoting the Minister or whether I am quoting him without context. My understanding of what goes on with these companies is that on the one hand they act like a cartel and on the other they do whatever the hell they like. By allowing any sense of removing a freeze on the current charges or changing the current charges, we are going to have multiple Joe Cooneys throughout the country. In doing so, the Minister is sowing bitterness, frustration, disappointment and anger with the Government. The Government could do without this after the recent defeat on water charges.

There is no reason the Government should have deferred it until September unless it believed that it was a possibility. Obviously, the Minster has recognised that the possibility of a reaction from the Joe Cooneys of this country is real. Hence the Government has deferred it until September in another classical kick to touch. The Government did the same last year and were supported to the hilt in doing so by Fianna Fáil.

The idea that we can regulate these people is something of a ruse. That is why I am opposing the Fianna Fáil motion and why I have tabled an amendment to it. This is not an environmental measure. It is not about the polluter pays principle.

9 o’clock

A regulator will not deal with the main issue of increases in bin charges. According to Fianna Fáil, a regulator will ensure there is a competitive market. The reality is that the market is the problem, it is not part of the solution. Waste collection was introduced here in the late 1800s to address the problem of cholera on our streets. It is an essential service. Nobody could tolerate uncollected bins throughout the months of July and August. Joe Cooney's bin remains uncollected tonight and there are probably more uncollected bins out there.

This problem stems from the policy of privatisation of public services. This particular service was privatised by Fianna Fáil. Had the shoe been on the other foot, it would have been privatised by Fine Gael. Fianna Fáil withdrew from the provision of the service and used the Trojan horse that if people did not pay bin charges, it would lead to privatisation. As other Deputies have pointed out, in significant parts of rural Ireland where there was no campaign against bin charges, and privatisation took place well in advance of the privatisation in Dublin city. Now that the service is in private hands, waivers have been abandoned, charges have increased and, crucially, the level of environmental damage remains unacceptably high. We export our recycled waste to China and elsewhere. We have practically zero waste treatment facilities here. The only measure taken in this area was the putting in place of the incinerator at Poolbeg against the will of the people. Three times city councillors voted against the incinerator at Poolbeg and on each occasion they were told by management, at the behest of Government, that it was going ahead regardless. Recently, 11 workers at the incinerator were poisoned.

In terms of advances, current recycling levels here stand at 34%, which is above the European average. I am sure the Minister, Deputy Denis Naughten, is aware that the European average is 28%. Those advances did not come about through forcing people to pay, rather they were achieved through the provision of facilities. Around the corner from where I live there is a wonderful bring centre at which people can dispose of plastic, cans, paper, bottles and so on. Everybody uses it. Provide the services and people will use them. All we need is a little re-education of the population. People in other countries are incentivised to recycle. When I was a child, one could get money for returning Cidona bottles and so on. Incentivising people does no harm. They could be given a receipt for an amount which they can use in the supermarket against purchases.

The proposed new system is about boosting the revenues of companies that engage in a race to the bottom in terms of their workers. The Greyhound strike of two years ago was the worst example of a ruthless employer dismissing workers and slashing the pay and conditions of others. The workers who replaced those who had been dismissed were forced to run and up down the street engaging in a piecemeal collection of bins because the quicker they worked the more money they were paid. The company justified this by saying that business is very tight and it is impossible for it to make a profit. Hence the demand for an increase in charges now. It is impossible for us to know whether these companies are making profits because they hide them offshore. Most of these companies are registered in the Isle of Man and elsewhere so we cannot see their profits. I note the Minister is nodding his head. I will give a few examples. Panda Waste last filed public accounts here in 2011, at which time it retained €23.2 million in profits. City Bin last filed accounts here in 2006, at which time it retained profits of €1.7 million.

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