Garden waste cost rise is just rubbish

DEAR Editor, Birmingham City Council could not manage, or be trusted to run an ice cream stall on the hottest day of the year, based on the continuing saga of the mismanagement of garden waste.

Now we are expected to pay £40 per year, a whopping increase of 15 per cent, from £35, to remove our garden rubbish. Councillor Ewan Mackey (Con, Sutton Trinity) is absolutely right to say: “This increase smacks of an economically illiterate panic move.”

Why are we not surprised that the waste collection department is already running at £2.5 million over budget this year? The most likely answer is that the whole waste project, including rolling out wheelie bins, was never properly thought through.

We only have to read the Post to find out those who made the decisions clearly know very little about planning. They never even thought about some houses that have many steps to negotiate and how on earth the people of those houses are expected to put wheelie bins out to be emptied.

Then the council had to introduce some sort of computer system in their bin lorries for God knows what.

It makes one wonder if those responsible for waste, who introduced the roll out , have any experience to carry out their role. The council should do the decent thing and tell the public, who indirectly pay their wages, this question: What was the budget for the removal of garden waste and the roll out of the wheelie bins?

I find it staggering that the council are already £2.5 million over the budget this year.

Mike Butler, Wylde Green, Sutton Coldfield