Call for views on ending DIY waste charging

A LOOPHOLE that has allowed councils to charge residents for disposing of DIY waste could be closed under new government proposals aimed at reducing fly-tipping.

Last week, the government said it was launching a consultation to seek views on fly-tipping, slot booking, and councils charging for residents’ disposal of DIY waste.

In 2015, the government issued guidance that banned backdoor charges on disposing household rubbish at recycling centres such as Reading and Bracknell, run by re3 on behalf of Reading, Wokingham and Bracknell Forest councils. It added that guidance made it clear that this included DIY household waste.

However, local authorities argued it was construction waste and charged regardless.

By closing this loophole, the government would allow residents to dispose of items such as shower screens, old carpets, tiles, roofing materials, rubble, and paving slabs without having to pay a fee.

It hopes that by doing so, it will cut back on fly-tipping, which has risen by 16% in the 2020/21 financial year.

And there was an 18% rise in flytipping for construction, demolition and excavation material in the same period – 60,000 cases were recorded.

The government also intends to review the use of slot booking for tip visits, introduced during the pandemic, amid fears that it was making it

harder for people to dispose of their waste.

Environment Minister Jo Churchill said: “We want to make sure that recycling and the correct disposal of rubbish is free, accessible and easy for householders.

“No one should be tempted to fly-tip or turn to waste criminals and rogue operators.”

Cllr David Renard, the environment spokesperson for the Local Government Association pointed out that the disposal of DIY waste was a non-statutory duty, which is why councils had introduced the charges.

“Money raised from charges goes back into services so councils can continue to offer disposal facilities for these materials to residents, who would otherwise find them difficult to get rid of and will ensure that the system is not abused by those seeking to dispose of trade waste for free.”

Back in 2017, re3 defended the charges, saying: “Waste such as rubble is deemed to be ‘ non-household’ regardless of whether it is from the property or home of a resident. Another way of looking at it is to consider that non-household waste is the types of waste that would normally form the fabric of a property, and thus would not be taken with the owner when moving house. re3 chargeable items – soil and rubble, asbestos, plasterboard – fall under this category.”

This week, Cllr Clive Jones, the leader of Wokingham’s Liberal Democrats, said: “In 2017, I wrote to the then executive member for environment, Cllr Angus Ross, asking him to stop the re3 charges on DIY waste, because I got a peer (in the House of Lords) to ask a written parliamentary question on the subject. The reply was that it should be classed as household waste, and should be free. Wokingham Borough Council and re3 took no notice.

“For five years, people have been paying for DIY waste disposal when they shouldn’t have been. When will re3 stop charging for it?”

Wokingham Labour group leader, Cllr Rachel Burgess, said the charges should be dropped.

“Wokingham Borough receives no financial support from this Conservative government leading to us being in the top third of comparable local authorities when it comes to Council Tax bills,” she said.

“It is little wonder, then, that the local Conservatives are desperate to wring every last penny from local residents and one of the ways they do this is by choosing to charge residents who are doing up their homes.

“The Conservatives have done this even though, according to Defra, ‘This is clearly against long-standing government policy.’”

She continued: “Defra have launched a consultation on this issue – just before the local elections. It looks like a cynical attempt to generate some positive headlines.

“But, should Wokingham’s Conservatives now be forced to comply with the policy, I would welcome this small relief to local people who were being penalised for trying to make their homes nicer.

“In the meantime, I urge the Conservatives to scrap the charges – there is no need to wait for the consultation to end.”

Cllr Gregor Murray, Executive Member for Resident Services at Wokingham Borough Council and a Conservative councillor, said: “We support all measures that will help our residents waste less, recycle more and that punishes those who blight our borough and environment with their selfish, illegal and costly fly-tipping.”

A Wokingham Borough Council spokesperson said: “We are aware of the national consultation and will respond to it before it closes in July.

“We are in the pre-election period and cannot make any announcement on our intentions in this area at this time.”