Taoiseach Enda Kenny has urged common sense amid warnings from a waste company that 18,000 households in Dublin may not get their bins collected this week.
Mr Kenny called for flexibility from Greyhound Recycling and Recovery, which bought the city council’s refuse service and has demanded customers pay in advance for services.
“I know that there was an issue here for consumers and customers who were required to pay €100 down in advance to have credit in their account before the collections begins,” he said.
“In these times of economic challenge there are people who cannot pay up €100 like that. I would have expected that the company would have been flexible in this matter.
“It may be that this company is coming from providing a smaller scale service to providing a much larger service maybe has run in to these teething problems.
Greyhound has warned that it needs an advance payment of at least €62 from households before a deadline tomorrow or bins will not be emptied.
“I heard the figure of 18,000 whose household waste might not be collected,” the Taoiseach said. “It’s a case where common sense should apply. Those two words are often times missing in this country much to our disadvantage. I hope we can apply that in these times.”
Greyhound refused to comment on the Taoiseach’s call.
Joe Costello, Labour TD and junior minister, repeated his calls for the waste company to get its house in order.
“I am calling on Greyhound again to withdraw its ultimatum to cease collection of waste from tomorrow for householders whose account is not in credit,” he said.
“There are continuing complaints, particularly in the north inner city, in relation to the inadequacies of the collection process.”
“There is a need for a period of time to ensure that Greyhound puts in place streamlined services and, on the other hand, to allow householders to get their account in credit. If Greyhound persists with its ultimatum tomorrow, there will be utter confusion, anger and mayhem throughout the city,” Mr Costello said.
Dublin City Council last December sold a bin collection list to Greyhound with 140,000 households on it. Customers are not required to use the company.
PA