The times they are a-changin’

There’s nothing I like better than a good bin story - especially if it involves wasting taxpayers’ money (Starting early with the rubbish puns – Ed.)

Of course there’s nothing funny if the council has wasted our money especially as they keep telling us they haven’t got any of it left, but there’s a certain gallows humour to be found in this latest tale.

I was one of those bewildered residents who, when taking my bin in as usual last Wednesday, noticed a big pink sticker saying my collection day was changing to, er, Wednesday.

(Actually he doesn’t have a clue what our bin day is he just follows whatever our neighbours are doing!– Mrs T).

It turns out after some relentless questioning from the PT that this sticker (and an accompanying leaftlet) campaign is costing Aragon, the waste company wholly owned by the council, 30 grand.

Or rather, to be more accurate, it’s costing you and me thirty thousand of your English pounds – enough to fund a rise in councillors’ allowances for the next few years.

The reason for the campaign is that the collecton schedule is changing and that means 40,000 city households will have their bins emptied on a different day.

The reasoon given for putting stickers on the bins of residents where things won’t change is so we don’t think we’ve been missed out.

Well guess what? If I hadn’t had a sticker on my bin telling me my new collection date was Wednesday - the same as my old one - I’d have put my bin out on, yes, you’ve guessed it, Wednesday.

Ah, says Aragon, but even if the day doesn’t change, the collection time might.

Well I don’t know about your street but on mine everybody puts their bin out either the night before or early o’clock on the day as has always been the instruction from the council.

Also the firm points out the leaflet “has the dual purpose of encouraging a greater uptake in recycling in the city’’.

The accompanying sticker is not recyclable.

Of course it isn’t.