Tonight:
5°c
Councils refuse to pilot 'pay as you throw' bin tax
21 Jan 2009No councils have come forward to take part in the controversial "pay-as-you-throw" waste trial aimed at boosting recycling, the Department for Environment said today.
The pilot would have seen up to five councils run financial incentive schemes which reward householders who recycle most and charge extra to those who leave the most rubbish out.
Local authorities had been asked to apply to take part in the scheme, which would have begun in April, but Defra said that no council had responded by today's deadline.
Environment Minister Jane Kennedy said: "The powers in the Climate Change Act enabling up to five voluntary pilot schemes were introduced at the request of local authorities and it is up to them whether they want to use them.
"No local authorities have expressed an interest in piloting a scheme at this time.
"It is absolutely right and laudable that local authorities are working hard to reduce the amount of waste thrown away and increase the amount recycled, and we have seen great progress over the last few years."
The announcement follows a survey by the Press Association which revealed that not one of more than 100 councils in England questioned was planning to apply for the scheme - with many expressing concerns that it could damage efforts to get people to recycle.
The plans to give councils the power to levy charges on households that create the most waste were announced while Tony Blair was prime minister in 2007.
After Gordon Brown took over, the scheme was downgraded to being piloted by five local authorities, with the prospect of an England-wide roll-out set back until 2012/13.
But the financial incentives scheme has proved controversial, with some councils and the Conservative Party labelling them "bin taxes", and fears being raised of an increase in fly-tipping and public protests.
Reader views (7)
Would be interesting to find out how much time and money this absurd idea cost. What a bunch of idiots.
- Jk, Kent, 22/01/2009 09:54
Report abuse
This is a totally ridicoulous idea.
How much more are you going to bleed people.
Who makes money from the public recycling anyway?
Someone has to be cashing in
- Jeanette, London, 22/01/2009 05:51
Report abuse
Turkeys tend not to vote for Christmas, the only people who don't know this all seem to work for New Labour.
- The Gene Genie, Croydon, 21/01/2009 23:48
Report abuse
One final nail in the coffin of this TERRIBLE idea is the problem of varying recycling abilities of each council. Why should I have a bigger bill to pay just because my council won't recycle plastic whereas the neighbouring council will.
- Isabel, Woking, 21/01/2009 16:31
Report abuse
Doug makes very valid points. There is also the issue of the potential for more fly tipping to occur which currently costs huge amounts to clear up - and everyone who pays their taxes pays for that.
- Nora, London, UK, 21/01/2009 13:20
Report abuse
The problem with a scheme like this is that it CANNOT work.
Off the top of my head, here are some questions that I would like Jane Kennedy, the environment minister, to answer :
1. How will charging work where blocks of flats have communal bins ?
2. How will you be able to appeal against your charges if you deem them to be exaggerated ?
3. Will all bins need to be locked so that neighbours can't slip their overspill into your bin a few moments before the refuse collectors arrive ?
4. If a household gets two daily newspapers and next door they don't take a newspaper, will the household with the newspapers be charged for producing more refuse than their neighbours or be given a refund because they recycle more than their neighbours ?
Yep - this scheme should be binned !
- Doug Watt, london e14, 21/01/2009 11:50
Report abuse
No more stealth taxes !!!!
Recycling rates are on the up in the Uk on the whole. WHy can;t efforts be made to the manufacturers to reduce packaging and to increase packaging that can be recycled !!
- Roberto Carballeiro, Basingstoke, 21/01/2009 11:44
Report abuse
