Ribble Valley Borough Council controlling Conservative group has refused to take part in the government’s pilot scheme to introduce charges for bin collection.

Councillor Ken Hind Chairman of the R.V. Conservative Association stated ‘ the government have written to every local authority in England inviting them to take part in a pilot scheme designed to introduce new charges for collection of bins and penalties for failure to comply we have decided to oppose the introduction of charges discourage such a daft policy. The intention of the Labour government is to start with 5 local authorities as a pilot scheme and then adopt charges in the rest of England. This is a thinly disguised attempt by the government to raise further taxes by stealth.

 ‘The government’s own optimistic assessment admits that families will pay £72.31 a year more, increasing the costs of hard pressed families, facing soaring costs of living increases and penalising them for having children. We all recognise the importance of recycling of waste, a policy the RVBC is introducing. It should be done by incentive and encouragement not by taxes and penalties with which to beat the public.

 ‘The Chartered Institute of Water and Environmental Management have warned the government that the costs of councils will rise as householders are monitored and billed for waste collection. These extra costs will have to be passed on to the householder or services will have to be cut to transfer resources to ‘bin tax’ collection.

 ‘These charges will be harmful to the environment and lead to a surge in fly tipping and backyard burning as people seek to avoid charges. Bin tax will also be avoided by people dumping their rubbish in other people’s bins. In the Republic of Ireland, where charges of 300-400 euros ( £240- £320 approx) are not uncommon for bin collection, 4 out of every 10 households burn rubbish, which now causes 73% of harmful dioxin emissions.

Another way to avoid charges will be for households to drive to the nearest local dump to dispose of their rubbish.

‘This is a cynical attempt to raise taxes by stealth which will be harmful to the environment ,increase the cost of living all dressed up in a coat of green wash.