John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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47. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the progress being made with waste management companies to ensure that when the new proposed pay-by-weight charging system is introduced in July 2017, it will not result in the massive price increases that were seen in July 2016.; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31834/16]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The charges applied by waste management companies are a matter between those companies and their customers, subject to compliance with all applicable environmental and other relevant legislation, including contract and consumer legislation.

As the waste industry began releasing, in June 2016, its proposed prices under the introduction of a mandatory pay-by-weight charging structure, the Government relayed its concern to the industry regarding the reported escalation of waste bills for customers of certain companies. On foot of this, my Department engaged with representatives of the waste industry to agree a way forward that results in customers paying no more for the same level of service than they were paying in June 2016 for waste collection over the 12 months to 1 July 2017.

Legislation () was signed on 30 June, 2016 to remove the requirement for mandatory pay-by-weight charging for household waste collection. However, it is still open to a company to charge on a pay-by-weight basis and if they are charging the same fee for the same level of service then this does not run contrary to the agreement. Indeed, many companies already had a pay-by-weight element to their charging structure before the agreement was reached and many of their customers had opted for this approach.

As previously announced, a review of all aspects of pay-by-weight is to take place prior to the end of the agreement in July 2017.