Wheelie Big Surprise for Residents who Said No to Another Bin

2.10.00pm GMT Sat 29th Nov 2008

Residents on Hartington Street received a surprise when the new recycling wheelie bins were delivered to all households, regardless of whether they had requested one

The troubled introduction of new orange-lidded domestic recycling bins has hit further problems, with bins being delivered by Bedfordshire County Council to households who have not requested them.

The latest setback for the roll-out of the bins came to light after Bedford Borough Liberal Democrat Environment Spokesperson Councillor Paul Whitehead took delivery of a bin which he had not ordered, only to find that bins had also been left outside the houses of all of his neighbours on Hartington Street.

Commenting, Cllr Whitehead said: "After all the delays and the increasing cost of the roll-out of the new orange bins, I suppose we shouldn't be surprised at further County Council errors in this matter. However, for the whole of the Borough to have been asked whether or not they want a new bin, only for bins to end up being delivered to households which did not request one is inexcusable. After the time and the taxpayers' money spent on surveying all households, there should be no reason why residents with no wish to have a bin have one left outside their house.

"The effect of this error on my street has been for a large number of bins to be strewn across the narrow pavements, clogging them up for local residents and causing particular problems for disabled people and parents with prams or buggies. I have spoken to other residents in this area and, like my family and I, they did not request to have a recycling bin because there is simply not enough room for further bin storage. It is precisely because extra bins are just not suitable for many households that we campaigned for residents to have a choice of a bin or a sack.'

"I have now been told that the mistake will be corrected and the unwanted bins will be removed. In the meantime, however, this is causing real disruption for local residents. Such incompetence gives the public even less confidence in the Tory County Council as it limps towards its eventual demise in the spring."

Bedfordshire County Council withdrew all funding for recycling sacks from April 2008, with the intention that residents would either use a new orange bin or would simply not take part in the household recycling scheme. Following a long Liberal Democrat campaign for residents to be offered a choice of using either a bin or a bag, Bedford Borough Council stepped in to fund a continued supply of bags for those households which do not wish to have a bin. A delay in ordering the bins by the County Council meant that a further £110,000 of emergency funding had to be spent on the continued provision of recycling sacks while the wait for the bins continued. The roll out of the new bins began in October, six months late.