Aontú TD Paul Lawless pressed the Government this week on tens of millions of euros in unclaimed Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) money.
Speaking in the Dáil during a Parliamentary Question session, Lawless criticised the scheme as a levy imposed on the public which, he argued, flowed into a private body rather than the State.
“The deposit return scheme has become another tax but it is not like a normal tax that might be used to pay teachers, nurses and gardaí,” he said.
“This is a tax that is going into a private organisation. Last year, at the end of 2024 the company had more than 100 million deposits from unclaimed bottles and cans. Last year, the company had a cash pile of €90 million after expenses. The CEO’s salary is not declared.”
The Dublin Mid West TD pressed Minister of State Alan Dillon on whether he was satisfied with unclaimed deposits totalling more than €66 million in 2024.
“This is a significant sum running to millions of euro,” Lawless continued.
“It is essentially a tax not used for the running of this State and that is what I am asking the Minister of State to address…Where is that money going? How much are the staff and CEO being paid? The people of Ireland have no choice but to pay this tax.”
In response, Dillon said unredeemed deposits were a common feature of similar schemes abroad and insisted the money was being reinvested.
“As of the end of 2024, €320 million had been refunded to consumers with €66 million remaining unclaimed,” the Fine Gael Minister of State said.
“This is not a failure. It reflects the early phases of the scheme but it also will naturally reduce as we move forward towards our EU targets of 90% redemption. Importantly, these funds do not sit idle. Re turn itself is a not for profit organisation. They are being reinvested into the scheme.”
He said the money went towards VAT liabilities, repayment of start up costs, the expansion of reverse vending machines, educational campaigns and contingency measures.
“The Department is satisfied. It is under appropriate regulatory and administrative controls and we review it on annual basis,” Dillon said.
Lawless, however, continued to press the Minister of State on transparency over pay and on potential costs to households.
“I have asked him how much the CEO is getting paid and what the salaries in this organisation are. That is the level of control I expect him to declare before us in the Dáil,” he said.
“It is unacceptable that he talks simply about the environmental aspect without addressing the issue the people of Ireland have, which is where the money is going, how much the CEO and senior management in Re turn are getting paid and what the situation is regarding the bin companies…Will families across the country who are struggling in this cost of living crisis see their bin fees rise as a result of this?”
Dillon reiterated that ReTurn, as a not for profit, was required to publish overall remuneration costs in its annual report but not individual salaries.
“From our perspective, we are in continuous engagement with ReTurn, which operates the scheme, and we want to see continuous improvement in how it is being led,” he said.
The Deposit Return Scheme was launched in February 2024 to help Ireland meet EU recycling targets. Under the scheme, consumers pay a refundable deposit on plastic bottles and cans, reclaimable when they return the containers to retailers.
Since its introduction, 2,750 reverse vending machines have been installed nationwide, with Coastwatch reporting the lowest levels of bottle and can litter on Irish shores in 25 years. The Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) survey recorded a 50% drop in such litter since the scheme began.