Permit Scheme No April Fool (North Bedfordshire Liberal Democrats)

North Bedfordshire Liberal Democrats <bedford@bedfordlibdems.org>

Permit Scheme No April Fool

April 6, 2004 2:57 PM

Plans by Bedfordshire County Council to postpone the start date for a permit scheme for use on it's tidy tips, whilst a new information leaflet is drawn up have been slammed by Borough Liberal Democrats as completely missing the point.

The new scheme was due to come into effect on April 1st. However following criticism from Liberal Democrats and many members of the public the start date has been put back from April Fools day to a date in June. This will allow for a new leaflet to be produced informing County residents how the scheme will operate after previous information was lambasted for it's lack of clarity. Members of Bedford Borough Councils Liberal Democrat group claim the scheme itself needs to be looked at rather than just tinkering with the way it is presented and are calling on the County Council to come up with a more though out scheme. The Lib Dems fear the scheme will just make it harder for people to dispose of their waste and increase fly tipping.

Speaking on the issue Lib Dem Environment Spokesperson Christine McHugh said:

" This scheme is doomed to failure. The public don't want it and our streets don't need it. Making access to these sites more difficult is just going to put people off using them altogether. Whilst the County Council continues to blame poor publicity for the bad reaction they are completely missing the point. It's the scheme itself that needs to be dropped. There is a minority that misuses these sites, but there is no need to punish people who dispose of their waste properly. We need to know who the offenders are, not treat everybody equally badly. They should be fairly easy to identify without going to anything like these lengths. What is needed is a scheme that offers people the opportunity to dispose of their waste easily and environmentally. Whilst these permits remain a part of the County Council plan it doesn't matter how many leaflets are issued it simply won't achieve this.

The County knows this scheme is unpopular which is why they have postponed its start until June. That gives them two months extra to realise it will create more problems than it solves. I just hope they come to their senses and come up with a realistic solution that tackles the minority of wrong doers."

ENDS