Liberal Democrat Councillors condemn threat of charges for Green Bin collections
Liberal Democrat Councillors pressed the Conservative Mayor on the issue of charges for waste during the Executive committee on Wednesday 11th September.
The Mayor was able to clearly rule out charges for the “Tidy Tip” but it was a different story when asked if he would rule out charges for green waste collections. Mayor Tom Wootton was unable to say that they would remain free and could only say “I don’t know about that one. We shall investigate and get back to you on that”. He added that “We have a load of things we are looking at” and promised a written answer.
Councillor Michael Headley said, ‘Residents will be dismayed at the prospect of charges being introduced for the Green Waste Collections. This would be yet another stealth tax after the record Council Tax increase last year and the Telecare tax they intend to put in place. Under the Liberal Democrat administration the green bin collection was deliberately kept as a free service. It would have been very easy for the Conservative Mayor to confirm that no new charges would be introduced if that was the intention: however, he couldn’t do that. Residents will see this as an ominous sign of things to come.’
Agenda for Executive on Wednesday, 11th September, 2024, 6.30 pm - Bedford Borough Council