Brian Stanley (Laois, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for the reply. Some 983,380 tonnes of packaging waste were created in 2015, with 32% of plastic waste escaping collection, and that is a huge figure. The Minister referred to marine plastic. The study published by NUI Galway showed that 70% of fish in a remote part of the North Atlantic had plastic in their stomachs, having ingested it, which shows that we have a real problem. We saw the plastic islands in the ocean on television recently. This issue is now coming to the top of the public agenda. I ask the Minister to bring in a ban on microbeads. There is no need for microbeads in toothpaste or washing powder. There is no need for it in anything. It is simply a gimmick on supermarket shelves. Let us ban microbeads completely. I ask the Minister to do that.

China said it will not take our waste mountain of plastic because much of it is contaminated. If we have to send plastic waste abroad, we are trying to stop it at the wrong end. We need to stop and reduce the manufacturing of it. What are the alternatives to China and what will happen to the mountain of plastic waste that was being shipped out?

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