John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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547. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has finalised its report on the operation of the household waste collection market; if the report will be published; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36538/18]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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On 4 July 2017, a motion was passed by Dáil Éireann which called on the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment to ask the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) to report on the operation of the household waste collection market.

Following a formal request on 25 September 2017 from the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, the then Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, in accordance with section 10(4) of the Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2014, requested the CCPC to carry out a study on the operation of the household waste collection market.

The study will assess the nature and scale of consumer and operator issues in the household waste collection market and consider if the introduction of an enhanced regulatory regime could efficiently address these issues, in the short and long term. It will include the following elements:

1. Research on Current Issues in the Waste Sector;

2. An Economic Assessment of the Household Waste Collection Market;

3. An Overview of Waste Collection in Other Countries; and

4. Recommendations

To date, I am informed that the CCPC has carried out an extensive analysis of the household waste collection sector. Actions carried out include a public consultation exercise, a series of interviews and meetings with approximately 20 key stakeholders in the waste market, including those with policy and enforcement roles, and engagement with consumer representative groups, academics, industry representative groups, and individual household waste collection operators.

The CCPC commissioned consumer market research, engaged with other EU national competition agencies on how waste markets operate in their jurisdiction, sought extensive information from over 40 operators and commissioned an external econometric analysis of the data received.

I am informed that the report is currently being finalised and it is likely that it will be published shortly.