Keep Weekly Bin Collections In Sheffield
Thursday 12th January 2012
GMB ACCUSE PICKLES OF DOUBLE STANDARDS
AS SHEFFIELD RESIDENTS FACE AXING OF WEEKLY BIN COLLECTIONS DUE TO
CUTS FORCED ON COUNCIL BY GOVERNMENT SPENDING CUTS
Reducing bin collections to
fortnightly could mean up to 40 job losses and could threaten
feedstock for plant that supplies heat and hot water across the
City says GMB
GMB, the union for public sector workers,
accused Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local
Government of double standards as weekly wheelie bin collections
are to be axed in Sheffield due to cuts in funds to the council
from his department to support local services.
At last year's Tory Party conference Mr
Pickles said that the Government wanted councils to collect refuse
weekly and that his department would pay £250m to support this. An
announcement on how £250m will be made available is expected next
week. See notes to Editors for information on Pickles
statements.
Sheffield Council’s cabinet agreed on
11th Jan that rubbish will be collected from homes once
a fortnight, rather than once a week. Free garden waste collections
will end. The plans will now be brought before full council for
final approval in March. If agreed at the full council
meeting weekly collections will end in April 2012. 40 jobs will be
cut at Sheffield Council contractor Veolia. Savings will be £2.44m
per year. The council said it will now look to ‘enhance’ recycling
services but what this means has not been spelled out.
Peter Davies, GMB Regional Officer for the
refuse staff, said: “Reducing bin collections to
fortnightly could mean up to 40 job losses. The proposals were the
council’s worst-kept secret.
Eric Pickles stands accused of double
standards. It is spending cuts imposed by his department that is
forcing Sheffield to find savings. At the same time Pickles told
the Tory Party conference that his Government will pay to keep
weekly collections.
Sheffield burns most of its household
rubbish at its incinerator which then provides all of the heating
and hot water for public sector housing and buildings in the City.
They need all they burn at present and this heating and hot water
means the public benefit immensely from, what in real terms, is
much cheaper provision. This could be threatened.
At the same time there is the threat
of closure to Sheffield’s house-hold recycle centres looming so we
can't assume this will not devastate actual recycle
rates.”
End
Contact: Peter Davies, GMB
Regional Officer on 07501 228312 or 0845 3377777. GMB Press
Office Steve Pryle on 07921 289880 or Rose Conroy on 07974
251823.
Notes to Editors
Eric Pickles, the Communities Secretary, has
been leading the drive to get rid of fortnightly collections,
describing weekly services as a “basic right”.
Mr Pickles has defended the government's plans
to offer councils financial support to restore weekly collections
saying the proposal is what most people want. It was Mr
Pickles who made the statement that “I firmly believe that
it is the right of every English man and woman that their chicken
tikka masala, the nation's favourite dish, the remnants can be put
in the bin without the worry that a fortnight later it is rotting
and making life unpleasant."
A £250m fund is being set up to help local
authorities in England switch from fortnightly to weekly bin rounds
under plans unveiled by Mr Pickles the Communities and Local
Government Secretary. He will next week set out incentives for
English local councils to bring back weekly collections of
household rubbish.