133. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if he will make a comprehensive statement regarding the corporate governance structure of a company (details supplied) involved in the plastic bottle recycling including information regarding senior management and CEO salary, the issue of distribution of profits within the company and retained refunds; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30666/24]

The Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is an extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme, whereby producers are given responsibility for the collection and disposal of their products. My Department has already successfully introduced a number of EPRs for other consumer products, such as batteries, Waste Electronic and Electrical Equipment (WEEE) and tyres.

As with the other EPRs, it is the responsibility of producers to establish and to nominate an operator of the scheme for approval by the Minister. All EPRs operate under minimum requirements set out in the Waste Management Act and in accordance with a Code of Corporate Governance developed for EPR schemes, which is published on the Department's website. Re-turn, the DRS operator, must also comply with the DRS Regulations and the terms and conditions set out in their approval, issued in accordance with those Regulations. It is also subject to the Companies Act 2014 and oversight by the Company Registration Office and the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement. Officials from my Department are in regular contact with Re-turn, including through weekly meetings and the provision of daily performance metrics.

Re-turn is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee set up by beverage producers to meet their obligations under the DRS Regulations. Re-turn is responsible for all operational and funding matters relating to the DRS. While I have no function in the business operations of this company, I am is satisfied that there are appropriate regulatory and administrative controls in place to monitor the performance of the Scheme.

To date, almost €47m has been refunded to consumers and Re-turn retains an open-ended liability to refund deposits to consumers, regardless of when the product was purchased. Any unclaimed deposits will be retained by Re-turn and will be reinvested in the scheme and recycling initiatives. Re-turn will also pay VAT to Revenue on unredeemed deposits.