Possibly a tax raise by stealth disguised as a “positive” move to encourage households to recycle more, the Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly has announced plans to “shake up the industry” by raising bin charges by up to €100 a year.
Such increase will also bring about new legislation which will reportedly ban flat fees.
But some detractors have correctly pointed out that such move won’t make any other difference to recycling, other than having to pay more for your bin charges.
Michelle Murphy from Social Justice Ireland said: “In the end of the day, if it’s based on weight the amount of rubbish is the amount of rubbish that you generate – it’s the same packaging, the same products, the same stuff you are throwing out.
“And it weighs the same amount at the end of the year as it does at the start of the year. Does it really encourage recycling? Possibly not.”