Flintshire Council faces backlash over three-weekly bin collections

Senior Flintshire councillors have been accused of ignoring residents’ views after backing plans to introduce three-weekly black bin collections.

Members of Flintshire Council’s Labour-led cabinet met this morning (Tuesday, 23 July) after they were initially recommended to approve proposals to collect general waste once a month instead of fortnightly.

However, bringing in a four-weekly service was deemed too controversial after more than 2,700 people signed a petition against the move.

The three-weekly alternative was suggested by council leader Ian Roberts after officials warned the local authority could be fined more than £1.2m for repeatedly failing to meet Welsh Government recycling targets.

One cabinet member described the amendment as a “pragmatic compromise” after ministers increased the recycling goal to 70 per cent this year.

But opposition politicians have slammed the decision and vowed to fight against it.

A group of five former Labour councillors are among those who have condemned the plans after leaving the party in May due to concerns their opinions weren’t being heard.

In a statement, members of the Flintshire People’s Voice group said: “Flintshire People’s Voice (FPV) strongly condemns the cabinet’s decision to end fortnightly bin collections and your FPV councillors will resist this relentlessly.

“We do not believe that this is the only way, or the best way, to save necessary money and have set out alternatives.

“The people of Flintshire do not want less frequent bin collections. They do not need to happen. Flintshire People’s Voice will listen to them.

“The cabinet’s attempt to blame ordinary residents for this, instead of looking at their own mismanagement, is reprehensible and they should apologise to the people of Flintshire.”

Cabinet members were advised ahead of the meeting that moving to a monthly collection service would have boosted the county’s recycling rate from just under 63 per cent to almost 69.

It would have left the authority short of the new goal of 70 per cent set by ministers for the current financial year, but resulted in cost savings of around £770,000 per year.

The changes were suggested after the council failed to meet the previous Welsh Government recycling target of 64 per cent for the last four financial years.

The cabinet approved the three-weekly service despite being told it would only lift recycling rates to 66 per cent, with the level of savings reduced to approximately £650,000.

However, the amended proposals have failed to placate critics on opposition benches after they rejected the plans at a scrutiny meeting held last week.

Liberal Democrat councillor David Coggins Cogan, who sits on the authority’s environment scrutiny committee, said: “Moving to a three-weekly black bin collection punishes residents who do recycle and does nothing to encourage those who don’t.

“This is classic Labour, directing from the top and not listening to the concerns of residents on the ground.

“The committee spent a long time discussing this option. I proposed the motion to abandon the monthly and three-weekly collections, which was unanimously backed.

“Cabinet has completely ignored our concerns and the concerns of the residents we represent.”

It’s understood opposition councillors are currently deciding whether to call the decision in for examination.

In a statement released after the cabinet meeting, the council said it was made after recent analysis showed that around 58 per cent of waste put in black bins in Flintshire could be recycled.

Officials said the availability of weekly recycling and food waste collections meant enough measures were in place for residents to separate their rubbish effectively.

Cllr Dave Hughes, cabinet member for streetscene and transportation, said: “After listening to feedback from our communities, cabinet has decided the best option moving forward is to introduce a three-weekly bin collection.

“This will allow us to move closer to Welsh Government’s 70 per cent recycling target while still providing a high-quality service to residents.

“Households are already fully equipped with the tools to make a big difference when it comes to recycling, and many residents are doing all they can.

“The transition to a new waste collection model should have minimal impact on residents if they fully utilise the weekly recycling and food waste collection services already provided.”

A further report will be brought to cabinet members in the autumn, before changes to the service are fully introduced.

By Liam Randall – Local Democracy Reporter