Huntingdonshire council's garden waste charge plan to be re-examined

Julie Staniland, from Yaxley, is among residents opposing the annual charge, fearing fly-tipping would go up

Plans to start charging households for garden waste collection are to be re-examined by a council.

Nearly 6,000 people have signed a petition against Huntingdonshire District Council's proposal to charge households £57.50 a year.

The subscription, due to begin in April, would help balance the budget and protect front line services, the council said.

The issue will be discussed by its scrutiny committee this week.

The council's cabinet agreed to implement the new charge at a meeting last month, with the authority saying it would be facing a £1.4m deficit without it.

The council said it would face a £1.4m deficit if it did not start charging for its green bin collections

Julie Staniland, from Yaxley, is among residents who oppose the payment, saying "I think we pay enough".

"Unfortunately, we will have to pay for it no doubt, but the fly-tipping will get worse as people won't pay for it and will dump it somewhere else."

Dora Meekings also wanted the plans scrapped, fearing garden waste would end up in landfill.

She said: "Also, lots of people cannot afford to pay it. We are not hard up, but it will still make a dent in what we have got to pay.

"[Home composting] is not possible for me as I have got hard landscaping in the back."

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The council has previously said people could share a green bin to reduce the cost.

It also planned to monitor whether more garden waste ended up in black bins.