A number of Galway City Councillors have questioned the viability of the council's rubbish collection service.

With competition from other companies, such as City Bin Co. intensifying, Cllr Padraig Conneely has demanded to see full details on the new waste management charges as well as the deficit implications on the 2007 budget. He also hit out at the council, saying that they do not have the "business acumen" to conduct the refuse service.

"I wouldn't like to see it privatised, but the council has to live in the real world. We are competing with the private sector and these days loyalties don't count for much; it has to be a financially viable option.

"Everybody is the same; they sit down and work out the figures and decide which is the better option. Whether they go to Tesco or Dunnes, whichever is better value for money. The council doesn't seem to realise that and can't compete in a commercial world," said Cllr Conneely.

"This is a public service, so you have to have the waivers for the elderly, the sick etc but you still have to competitive. You have to offer good value and be proactive. If City Bin didn't come into Galway, the prices would be an awful lot higher. The council shouldn't be waiting for someone to force their hand before they lower prices," he added.

While councillors have argued that the refuse service could never be profitable as it did not have "a level playing pitch", Cllr Catherine Connolly said that it should remain the hands of the council.

"This is an essential public service. We have been under pressure from the government to privatise refuse collection since 1999. There is definitely an agenda there. We are now the only public service refuse collector in the West and I think it is very important that we keep that going.

"I am full of praise for the council staff; they are over stretched as it is but they are still doing a great job. The problem is that we are getting no recognition from the government. An open market doesn't work with everything. It didn't work with housing and it won't work here. If we privatise the service, the price will be lower at the beginning but once there is a private monopoly, it will rise and rise. I think it's a daft concept," Cllr Connolly concluded.

Galway City Council have said that they are fully committed to providing a refuse collection service going forward and have adapted to the market through the introduction of pay-by-weight and waiver schemes.

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