Waste Management
Dail Éireann — 2026-05-28
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Gary Gannon (SD), Dublin Central

The State does set the regulatory framework that underpins the transition here. It is important that the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, understands the consequences for people in my area in Stoneybatter, Broadstone and Phibsborough, who are being forced to enter into a free-for-all between different private operators on streets that are wholly unsuitable for the services they provide. Imagine the situation where two or three days a week where small residential streets where there will be bins preventing people from getting through footpaths. That is a substantial lacuna in the law and the policy.
Accessibility and public sector duty might even come into play here because how we provide for waste management services does have consequences for those. The Minister can potentially apply public sector duty to ensure there is accessibility proofing done of this decision. We are paying the consequences of this bad privatisation of waste management. The ideal scenario for most of us would be for waste management services to come back under the remit of local authorities.
As it stands, people in Stoneybatter, Phibsborough and Broadstone will have to choose between competing operators and providers. They do not have anywhere to store the large bins they will be expected to purchase at a cost that is substantially higher than they paid previously. For all that, they will not only have seagulls picking their bags but they will also will face impediments in the context of getting up and down their streets.
These decisions that will have consequences. I am asking that the Minister intervene simply by asking Dublin City Council if this is the best policy for this particular part of Dublin. It is a much-discussed area because it is in the central part of the capital city. The policy in this regard is nonsensical. Dublin City Council is trying to remove from itself the cost involved in picking up scattered rubbish, but the consequences will be felt by people who cannot get up and down their streets.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-05-28/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-21T01:01:08+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-05-28