Every councillor knows the four main principles as they are in the regional waste management strategies. Those include prevention and minimisation, such as the plastic bag levy, and recycling, which is the core approach to dealing with waste. We aim to reach a target of recycling 50% of waste. All areas are making an effort and some counties are trying very hard but the reality is that today we still recycle only approximately 12% of our waste, according to the latest figures from the EPA. In 1998, when we started this process and councillors had the right to make decisions – but did not do so – we were recycling 9%. In four years we have improved by only 3%.