Dublin's anti-bin charge campaigners claimed to have secured a victory in Ringsend yesterday when council workers collected refuse from defaulters despite promising not to do so.
Up to 40 protesters threatened to blockade a refuse truck in the Dublin 4 area over plans to empty only paid-for bins. Local campaign activist Mr Shay Ryan said the truck was let through only when "a public assurance" was given that this policy would be revoked in the area.
A spokesman for Dublin City Council said, however, "this is not a victory for the protesters. We are simply trying to avoid as much conflict as possible."
The council, which this week promised to stop collecting refuse from householders who had not paid their refuse charges in Dublin 4, 6 and 6W, has also claimed to have begun legal proceedings against "several hundred" defaulters.
"We are initially targeting people who have paid nothing to date, and who have received up to 12 notifications and summonses, including reminders that they will be pursued through the courts," said the council spokesman.
He added the local authority would continue to introduce its "selective" collection policy on a phased basis, starting with those locations where there was a low number of defaulters.
Meanwhile, a second week of protests in the Fingal County Council area is due to start today amid claim and counter-claim that the introduction of bin charges is part of a broader plan to privatise the service.
The chairman of Dublin Sinn Féin, Mr Daithí Doolan, cited a letter from the local authority to SIPTU last February saying the current system of refuse collection was "no longer economically viable".
"I am calling on local authorities across Dublin city and county to come clean on whether they are preparing to privatise refuse collection services," said Mr Doolan.
SIPTU's regional secretary, Mr Brendan Hayes, described the letter as "very old news",noting that negotiations had since taken place between refuse workers and the county council, resulting in new work practices and management systems.
"We would be satisfied that, on the basis of the performance of employees of the council, we would have as efficient a collection system as possible.
"We can see no argument on the basis of efficiency for privatisation."
A spokesman for Fingal County Council added it was "very happy" with the deal agreed with its workers and it had "no intention to privatise the service".
The local authority returns to the High Court this morning where it will review an interim injunction taken out against the 15 named demonstrators in the area.
It is understood the council will argue against making arrests in order not to inflame the situation further.
