Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Fianna Fáil supports the enactment of a waste reduction task force and a waste regulator that will ensure fair practice within the waste sector and prevent price gouging for all households. However, a pay-by-weight bin charge initiative has not been fleshed out in full, leaving us with more questions than answers. The Government has tried to rush through a pay-by-weight bin charge but with little transparency as to what the pricing system and charging system will entail. The previous Minister promised to raise public awareness on the matter and introduce dual pricing in order that people could compare the cost of pay-by-weight relative to a fixed charge system, all of which has not transpired. Last year, bin companies threatened to considerably increase their prices, disseminating fear across the country. Households throughout the country still share that anguish and fear.

I want to bring to the Minister's attention an issue I have often raised with him, namely, illegal dumping. My biggest fear is that such illegal dumping will flourish and, as usual, rural Ireland will be at the coalface. The constituency of Cavan-Monaghan has seen numerous incidents involving the dumping of tyres, domestic waste, mattresses and all the rest but its local authorities lack the proper resources to deal with it. There is one person in County Cavan and perhaps two in County Monaghan to deal with this issue across the entire constituency. I ask the Minister not to do anything that will encourage illegal dumping as it is a huge problem nationwide at present.

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