When will we get the true story about bin collections ?

A few weeks ago a report stated that having fortnightly collections does not increase recycling rates. Personally, I disagree as I have to recycle much more now to avoid an overflowing bin after 10 days, but I guess that is just anecdotal.

Now, another group are claiming that having smaller bins increases recycling.

Hang on. Doesn't this contradict the advice we were given two weeks ago ? I understand the principle. Rationing space in a normal waste bin encourages people to recycle more so they can use the wasted empty space in their recycling bin.

Now if we are to go over to smaller bins, collected on a weekly basis, I fail to understand how this is really any different to collecting larger bins on a fortnightly basis, except that it will add about £1 million to the costs of each local authority's waste budget each year.

Is it any wonder that people are confused about recycling when conflicting advice comes out every other week.

Weekly bin collections instead of fortnightly - Are people prepared to pay for them ?

A committee of MP's has said that fortnightly alternative collections are not suitable for some built up urban areas. So does this mean that the government will pay the cost for weekly collections ?

When I sat on the sub-committee for North Norfolk District Council that looked at the waste contract in North Norfolk, we were given costings for what it would cost to have weekly instead of fortnightly collections. In layman's terms, and obviously it depended on which tender you looked at, but it could meant almost a doubling of the costs of the contract. There was no way that the people of North Norfolk were prepared to pay a 20% increase in council tax in order to be able to have weekly collections, so fortnightly collections was the option we went for.

Incidentally, recycling in North Norfolk has more than doubled to more tan 40% since then.

So some important questions need to be asked of those who whinge incorrectly that bins will have flies in them (wrong), that they will be over run by rats (wrong) and that it does not encourage recycling (wrong).

Do they want their council tax to rise by 20% in order to pay for weekly collections ? No. Didn't think so.

Fortnightly bin collections - Which Tory councils do them ?

The Tories seem to be getting very excited about fortnightly (or alternative weekly) bin collections. However, they seem loathe to reflect on the fact that a number of Tory council's introduced fortnightly bin collections.

My own local council area, Broadland, for example, is Tory run, and whilst Tory run introduced fortnightly collections.

So does anyone know of a Tory Council near them that either introduced a fortnightly bin collection system or inherited such a system and now defends it as the right thing to do.

Please, let me know

Richard Madeley and Rubbish - Words that now have another reason to go together

Richard and Judy this teatime featured Richard Madeley in a rant over council's having fortnightly rubbish collections.

I am still at a loss as to the reason why. My parents have had fortnightly collections in Broadland (where I now live) for four years whilst other councils across the country have done so for many years also without people in those areas having too many problems. Of course, there is a problem when you can't be bothered to split your waste between ordinary waste and recycling. Perhaps this is Richard Madeley's problem.

He then had a rant about the French having "Daily rubbish collections". Firstly Richard, how unfriendly is that for the environment ? Wasted petrol, fumes, etc, and something that clearly is not needed whilst to my knowledge. Daily refuse collections would add about 50% to the average council tax bill. The average District council spends arounf 10-15% of its annual budget on refuse collections, and this is for fortnighly alterantive collections. Multiply this 10-15% by five or six times, and we can all see this would cost an astronomical sum for council tax payers. I'm sure with Richard Madeley's millions, he is happy to pay all that extra council tax, but the rest of us aren't just so he can be self indulgent in throwing away all his waste on a daily basis.

As a former reporter you would expect Richard Madeley to have some understanding of the issues and the financial implications. It appears, however, that he hasn't, which speaks volumes about him.

Richard Madeley's ideas on refuse collection are like a new phone in quiz "He says, but we have to pay"

Some Conservative Councils "hit families the hardest " says Tory Spokesman

The headline is correct, so long as you follow the reasoning of Caroline Spelman, Tory shadow spokesman for local government to the logical conclusion.

She is quoted on the BBC website as saying saying about the axing of weekly bin collections "Axing weekly collections will hit families the hardest ".

Really Caroline ? Is this your honest view, if so, all those Conservative run Councils around the country are "hitting families hardest".

Now I know that a good number of Lib Dem council's are also running twin bin systems, with fortnightly collections. Indeed, I was part of the panel that introduced this to North Norfolk. However, the Lib Dems are not seeking to have a go at the government over this in order to seek cheap headlines.

What Ms Spelman ought to realise is that by using this to criticise the government, she is also criticising Conservative councils across the country.

She does not strike me as the sharpest tool in the box.