Paudie Coffey (Fine Gael)

We have offered clear alternatives. We are asking the public sector for pay freezes for those earning over €50,000. This proposal may be unpalatable but it must be considered. Other Members are beginning to buy into our philosophy regarding how to save the economy.

I raised a matter on the Adjournment last week which has since been taken up nationally. I refer to the crisis that is looming in respect of the waste management. As a result of the global economic downturn, international demand for the recycled material produced here has disappeared. This has serious implications for the national waste strategy, the viability of the recycling infrastructure that exists here and also the viability of the household collection services offered by local authorities and private operators. I request an urgent debate on this issue in order that we might hear what the Minister has to say. His solution to date has been to create waste mountains, stockpile waste in warehouses and co-incinerate material in other countries. This flies in the face of the policy relating to reuse and recycling and is just not good enough.