Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his response. I am glad to hear this is not yet a done deal and the Minister still has serious consideration to give to it, including the fact he will consider the future for the workers, which is fundamentally important. We need to consider Ireland's position on our requirements to reduce waste. This country is way off and we will not meet our 2025 EU targets. We have a lot of work to do in the waste sector and this will only be done through a more public model. This has come out of the blue for many people. There were discussions last year but this was not in the programme for Government. It was not identified in any manifesto. There was no information on this prior to the election. When it becomes widely known, there will be a lot of concern.

I ask that the Minister uses the Oireachtas committee as a way to investigate and examine this issue from an Oireachtas perspective. I am not sure when the committee will be set up but this should be the first item it considers, after which it can make recommendations to the Minister for his consideration as he goes through the subsequent process and dialogue.

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