Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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41. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he will consider intensifying the current laws in place against littering and dumping, in particular with the use of CCTV for the gathering of evidence and if local authorities are entitled to use this in court; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57863/21]

Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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My Department published the General Scheme of the Circular Economy Bill 2021 on 15 June 2021. It is my intention under the Bill to facilitate not only the use of CCTV, but also the use of a broad range of Audio Visual Recording (AVR) equipment in order to assist local authorities in their efforts to combat litter and illegal dumping. Drafting of the Bill is well advanced, as is, I understand, the pre-legislative scrutiny process before the Joint Committee on Environment and Climate Action. The Bill will be published and enacted as soon as possible after pre-legislative scrutiny has been completed and I have considered the Report of the Committee. I look forward to receiving the Committee's recommendations.

A combination of legislation and guidance will help to ensure that the processing of personal data, obtained through the use of CCTV and AVR equipment, may be carried out by local authorities tasked with enforcing both litter and waste legislation, thus providing an important deterrent in order to protect our environment from the scourge of illegal dumping, while at the same time respecting the privacy rights of citizens. The Bill can also facilitate consideration of the use of Fixed Penalty Notices for litter and waste enforcement purposes.