DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL TO WITHDRAW WASTE SERVICE!
PROTEST AT CITY COUNCIL MEETING 6PM CITY HALL MONDAY 7 NOVEMBER
Refuse collection and waste management was established in Dublin in late 1800’s to stop spread of diseases like cholera. Since then it has been a publicly run service. But now Dublin City Council are withdrawing this service from December 5th.
Under Section 4 of the Waste Management Act 2001, the city manager can over rule elected councillors on matters to do with waste.
He has decided to invoke these powers and withdraw a public bin services from the people of Dublin. His aim is to hand it over to private contractors who will eventually being in even higher charges.
In South Dublin Council, one private contractor, Thornton’s, is charging people €60 extra just to enter their service. They are also increasing the cost of each lift. Once the system is privatised, the waiver system for the poorest section of the population will be removed. Waivers only exist in three councils in the country at the moment – and one of them is Dublin City Council.
When the poor cannot afford to pay for waste collection, illegal dumping will increasing, causing a new health hazard.
On three occasions, Dublin City councillors have voted to reject the manager’s decision and three times they have been told by management that he is going ahead regardless.
In late September management wrote to the 150 approx bin collection workers and informed them that they would not be working in this department after 5 Dec. They were given an option to choose which dept to redeploy to
Many of these workers have given a life time of labour in collecting our rubbish and are now treated in this demeaning way. They are furious, are offended and feel powerless
At the Monday meeting on November 7th of Dublin City Council, Cllr Brid Smith of the People Before Profit Alliance will move the following resolution:
‘In light of the clear anti democratic Executive function afforded to management to privatise the bin collection service, despite three majority votes of the elected members to maintain the service in public hands, this Council calls on the current Government to repeal Section 4 of the Waste Management (Amendment) Act 2001 which provides that the making of a waste management plan will become an executive (management) function, a change from the Waste Management Act 1996, where the power was a reserved (elected member) function.’
Come to the protest outside the make your voice heard against a totally undemocratic system of management that is depriving us of a vital public service.
Issued by People Before Profit, Councillor Brid Smith 0879090166