Waste fees rise as councils squeezed

FEES AND charges levied by councils for waste collection rose by nearly 37 per cent over a sixyear period in which bin collections have become less frequent in many areas, a new report suggests.

English local authorities raised more than £147m from fees and charges for services such as garden waste and special collections in 2015-16, compared to nearly £108m in 2010-11, adjusted for inflation, according to research from the TaxPayers’ Alliance.

The report also found a near 109 per cent increase in charges and fees for airports, harbour and toll facilities, and a 22 per cent rise in money taken in for birth, death and marriage registrations. But the TaxPayers’ Alliance acknowledged the total amount councils have raised from charges and fees over the period fell by more than £470m.

Although the proportion of council spending raised from charges and fees increased from 8.73 per cent to 9.64 per cent, at the same time many have faced large real terms cuts in their government grants.

The Local Government Association (LGA) said councils will have seen their core central government funding cut by 54 per cent between 2010 and 2020.

Coun Claire Kober, the chairwoman of the LGA’s resources board, said: “This report clearly shows that councils receive almost £500m less in income from fees and charges than they did five years ago.

“Faced with escalating costs and unprecedented funding cuts since 2010, this is a tremendous effort by councils to keep fees and charges low for hard-pressed residents.”