Ban on coffee cups passes second stage in Dáil
The Waste Reduction Bill banning single-use coffee cups has passed its second stage in the Dáil overnight.
The Bill will now go to the Oireachtas environment committee for further scrutiny.
The Bill, put forward by the Green Party and Labour, would introduce a deposit refund scheme on bottles and cans, and a ban on coffee cups that cannot be composted.
Environment Minister Denis Naughten has asked his colleagues to freeze the plans put forward by Labour and the Greens. A vote on whether to do so is due on Thursday.
Denis Naughten has said certain provisions in the Bill, which also includes a deposit/return scheme for drinks containers could be massively expensive to set up.
"A study investigating the possible introduction in the UK puts a figure of €790m per year on it," he said.
"These are enormous amounts, I believe before we spend a fraction of this on its introduction, we need to ascertain what the benefits would be."
The Bill also proposes a ban on plastic cups, plates and cutlery.
Green Party Leader Eamon Ryan is delighted the Bill passed its second stage and was progressing to committee stage.
"It's been a really good night for the Dáil. It was unusual, it was a Green Party Bill presented by Labour in their time and the Governemnt aren't stopping it," he said.
