Reforming the Regulation of Household Waste Collection Services in Ireland: the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission Study

In 2019 the Department with responsibility for household waste (HHW) policy in Ireland will commence a review of its 2012 Policy. That review – as anticipated in the 2012 Policy – will rely on the research and analysis of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) on the state of competition in the HHW sector and on its policy guidance/recommendations. The CCPC’s 2018 study draws attention to a number of shortcomings in the HHW sector’s performance. It recommends a national economic regulator, not the appropriate market design (i.e. the status quo, side-by-side competition, which is evolving into a series of geographic unregulated monopolies; competitive tendering; and/or price control). Market design is delegated to the regulator. The description and analysis of the CCPC concerning the HHW sector should be relied upon by the Department in its review. There is, however, no need for a national economic regulator and all the associated costs, which no doubt will be passed onto households. Competitive tendering administered by local authorities with advice from the Office of Government Procurement, the CCPC and others, is the preferred market design and regulatory structure.