North East Lincolnshire charge for garden bin collection

Plans to charge householders £25 for garden waste collections have been given the go-ahead by North East Lincolnshire Council.

The fee is part of a package of waste management measures aimed at saving the authority £2.5m over four years because of government cuts.

The decision was voted through at a meeting of the council's cabinet despite strong opposition.

Leader Chris Shaw said "tough decisions have to be made at tough times".

He said: "These tough decisions affect us all. I pay council tax and I will have to pay for a brown bin."

Councillor Keith Brookes said the move would discourage recycling.

"We've tried to encourage recycling but we now impose a £25 charge and people will stop recycling.

"They will put the waste in with ordinary waste bins and it will go to landfill."

The optional charge for brown bin collections will come into force next April.

Householders can opt not to subscribe to the scheme and the brown bins will be reclaimed by the Labour-run council.