JC, Somebody tried the HR Act on wheelie bins very early on and lost (he argued against having to put the bin out every week). The frivolous cases are thrown out very quickly. If it is your wheelie bin (albeit loaned by the council) and it is on your land it is your responsibility. The reason people in some areas are told not to put bins out too early is no doubt because some people had put their waste in other people's bins when the opportunity presented itself or some people 'claimed' that the excess waste in their bin wasn't their's.
It seems that the 'enviroilliterates', the opposite of 'envirofascists', are determined that our country should be a cess pit full of waste that it is nobody's responsibility to manage. I was Chairman of the Waste Management Committee of West Oxon District Council and Vice-Chairman of the Environment Committee when we had to make a lot of the decisions concerning recycling and waste management. I was deputy chairman of the Waste Management Best Value Review. We had some very difficult decisions to make and we heard a lot of arguments on both sides. We had to sign contracts with private firms to collect waste and recyclables. If bins are flowing over then, as the workers move them to clip onto the back of the lorry to be lifted, waste spills onto the street. That waste either has to be picked up by the binmen (doubles the time taken to do the round, doubles the cost to the council taxpayer) or swept up/picked up by the street cleaners (more than doubles the amount of street cleaning). It is reasonable therefore that people are asked to keep the contents of their bin to a sensible level by using the recycling/composting facilities that councils are obliged to provide. It is an economic argument. Keep council tax down.
I have seen surveys that suggest that well over 80% of the contents of household bins (before recycling boxes etc) could be 'economically' recycled. It is sensible therefore to recycle that material.
Having now read the council's website, which is not couched in emotive terms, I am firmly with the council's officers.
BTW, the fine was one week's wages of 40 hours at less than the minimum wage. Bus drivers do not receive the minimum wage. People with 4 children receive £200 or so per month child benefit. The man will be in receipt of working family tax credits and might be in receipt of housing benefit. He could have made an offer to pay the £80 fine at £1 per week and he could have defended himself in court if he thought a principle was at stake. He could have taken advice from the council in how to reduce his waste. He already had a large bin. He chose to do nothing and now runs bleating to the papers that he is hard done by when, if his behaviour was duplicated by others, it would add substantially to the council tax bill that his neighbours must pay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I genuinely believe that, if the economic arguments were sensibly put, the position of those who support this guy would clearly be seen to be to increase council tax, undermine the officers of the local council, reduce recycling and thereby jobs, reduce recycling and increase imports and reduce recycling to increase the landfill taxes imposed on the council tax payers.
If you were in a position of authority, as I have been, what would your decision really be?
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When in Woking do as the Wokes do.
"I do not wish to form my opinions by thoughtlessly quoting others; I wish others to support their opinions by sensibly quoting me." Paul Wesson (Aardvark) 13th April 2008
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