The biggest maker of chewing gum in the world, Wrigley, lobbied the Government against plans to introduce special taxes on gum to defray the cost of cleaning it from the streets, it has emerged.
Official records also indicate that the McDonald's fast-food chain and the Irish Bankers' Federation, which represents all the big financial institutions, were among the commercial interests who contacted the Government about a proposal to tax fast-food wrapping and receipts from "hole in the wall" bank machines.
Other submissions were received from the Supermacs fast-food group and from the Dublin City Business Association, which represents the major retailers in the city.
The taxes were proposed in 2003 by the then minister for the environment, Mr Martin Cullen, as an anti-litter measure similar to the levy on plastic bags.
Mr Cullen believed that some €9 million could be raised from the taxes to meet the cost of cleaning the litter.
However, Mr Cullen's successor, Mr Dick Roche, is understood to favour imposing a compulsory charge on the relevant industries instead of levying a tax on consumers.
Informed sources said yesterday that the Government would decide on the matter early this year.
According to the sources, few if any of the commercial bodies who have contacted the Government were in favour of special levies on the chewing gum, fast-food or banking industries.
Records released under the Freedom of Information Act indicate that the Chicago-based Wrigley Company twice wrote to the Government about the proposal before submissions were requested from the public and from industry.
Mr Roche's Department refused to release the company's correspondence, stating that the matter related to an ongoing deliberative process. However, Wrigley is understood to have expressed strong opposition to a tax on wrappings or an industry-wide levy.
The record shows that Wrigley's head of communications for Ireland and Britain, Ms Jo Hartop, first wrote to the Department in April 2003. The letter was sent three months before Mr Cullen publicly disclosed that he was planning to introduce a tax of 5 to 10 cents on packets of gum.
Wrigley sent a second letter to the Government last October on the day after Mr Roche indicated that he was open to imposing a compulsory levy on the gum industry instead of a tax consumers would have to pay. The letter was addressed to the Minister and was signed by the chief operating officer of the Wrigley Company, Mr Ronald V. Waters.
The Department's record indicates that 15 formal submissions were received from commercial and other interests on foot of a consultant's report on the plan, which was published last September.
In addition to McDonald's Restaurants Ireland and Supermacs, submissions were received from two Brussels-based bodies: the European Food Service and Packaging Association and the European Organisation for Packaging and the Environment.
