Results 6,761-6,780 of 7,278 for speaker:Dick Roche

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: If the Deputy will hold on for a second, I will bring him up to date. I am giving him a history lesson because he spoke about honesty, but it might not be a bad idea if he applied a little honesty.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: The then Minister, former Deputy Spring, went on to discuss the general issue of waivers or the mitigation of charges. He made the point that the Bill did not attempt to "define the grounds" where waivers would apply or "to restrict the exercise of this power" as this was an area where the decisions might best be based on local knowledge or experience. The Minister's views are as valid today...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: Nobody interrupted the group of Deputies opposite when they were spieling out their nonsense. I am simply telling the truth.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: I repeat, there was so much wisdom in the contribution of the then Minister, Dick Spring, who was a good friend of Deputy Sherlock's at the time, that his wisdom was returned to 13 years later by yet another Labour Party Minister for the Environment, Deputy Howlin. In his programme, Better Local Government — A Programme for Change, the then Minister, Deputy Howlin, recognised the...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: The truth often hurts and I ask the Deputy to bear with me for a few minutes and I will give him a few more lashes.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: Tonight's debate is about a fundamental principle, the principle of subsidiarity. It is a debate about whether local government should be allowed to decide how local services are to be delivered, taking into account local needs and conditions, or whether we should instead look to micro-management by the Minister of the day of these essentially local services. We have come a long way in the...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: As far as I am aware, I never missed a programme about which I have known.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: The Deputy heard wrong. He has selective hearing. The objective of pay-by-use charging is environmental in its focus and it encourages recycling. The less waste produced, the lower the charge. The precise charging mechanism in any given area will inevitably be fitted to local circumstances, costs and available technology. I note, for example, that Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, on...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: I am not misleading the House. The Deputy's colleague and his party supported the new charging system——

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: Let the record show that the Labour Party supported the system that is currently in place.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: It is worth recalling——

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: The Deputy is equivocating because the truth hurts.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: I will not be filibustered either.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: It is worth recalling that the service provided in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown is not in the hands of a private operator, it is in the hands of the council which is dominated by Fine Gael and the Labour Party. I understand the Labour Party changed its long-standing view on the issue of service charging and on that of waivers. Perhaps Deputy Gilmore would like to inform the House of his record in...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: It is absolutely consistently inconsistent. The Deputy is quite right.

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: Others have opted for a combination of a standing charge and a charge per lift, while the humble prepaid tag also has its place. The point must be accepted that waste charges generally have increased in line with the exponential increase in the cost of waste management. We have moved from a position where we relied on a large number of poorly managed landfills to one where we are rapidly...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: This represents an increase of over 9% on 2004, which far exceeds the rate of inflation. It is almost 2.5 times the level of funding provided in 1997, when the parties opposite were in Government. In anyone's language, this represents a tremendous boost for local government and it enhances the ability of local authorities to provide quality services, including the operation of appropriate...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: Repeating the mantra is not in any way to deflect from the truth. The relevant figures are those I have placed before the House. In practice, waiver schemes are generally available where a local authority provides the service directly. In general, where services are provided by private collectors, local authorities have not considered it necessary to put any supplementary arrangement in...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: I expect these discussions to conclude shortly. I wish to make a further point, which I think is appropriate in the context of this debate, about the private sector and the way it has operated. In recent years we have witnessed the emergence of an extensive and vibrant private waste management industry working alongside local authorities. This is to be welcomed but it brings new issues to the...

Domestic Refuse Charges: Motion. (15 Feb 2005)

Dick Roche: No Labour Party or Fine Gael councillors spoke out against the charges and not one of them voted against the scheme.