'Shocking' cost of green bin collection scheme

The cost of implementing a charging policy for green bins in South Gloucestershire has been criticised.

South Gloucestershire Council is levying a £36 annual fee for garden waste collections, which it says will generate up to £1.2m a year.

But Conservatives have described the estimated cost of £650,00 to implement the scheme as "shocking" and called the charge a "bin tax".

A council spokesman said the cost will be "cancelled out" by the savings made.

The new scheme came into force on 31 March.

Conservative councillors Steve Reade and Ben Stokes said: "Households will be horrified to know that at a time when money is tight this flawed bin tax is costing them a whopping £650,000 to put in place."

The party claim it will lead to a surge in fly-tipping and a fall in recycling as more people put their green waste in their black bin.

A South Gloucestershire Council spokesperson said the authority is "confident that the implementation costs will be consistent with our original estimates".