Issue - meetings

Report of the Chair of the 5-Member Working Group

The Council gave consideration to the report as set out on pages 19-30 of the agenda, which asked it to approve the retention of weekly refuse and recycling collections, and to approve the introduction of wheeled bins for general waste collections from 01 June 2019.

The report was widely welcomed by Members as informative, evidence-based and clear in its recommendations. Delight was expressed that the administration had delivered on its commitment to protect weekly waste collections for residents in spite of the various pressures facing the authority, particularly in light of the consultation responses which had shown overwhelming support for the continuation of this service.

A Member explained that he personally would have preferred a go-live date of 01 April 2019 as opposed to 01 June 2019, as the clear benefits of the new scheme made it desirable in his view to roll the programme out as early as possible. The Member did however knowledge the time pressures and potential risks that this would involve. Other Members however stressed that 01 June represented a more sensible approach, as this would allow recent changes to garden waste and recycling collections to bed in and lessons from those schemes to be evaluated, ensuring that when the scheme did launch the transition would be as smooth as possible.

It was requested that Members be kept fully informed of the progress of the scheme during all stages of the lead-in period towards implementation in June 2019. The Director of Finance and Transformation confirmed that the Service Delivery Committee would retain oversight of the project and be kept updated on a regular basis.

Members asked that their thanks to the project team responsible for the successful transition to wheeled bins for recycling be passed on, as well as their appreciation to the refuse staff for maintaining normal service levels during the recent hot weather.

It was moved by the Leader of the Council, seconded by Councillor L A Bentley, and

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED THAT:

(i)       Weekly refuse and recycling collections be maintained;

(ii)     A planned introduction of wheeled bins for general waste be approved; and

(iii)   An implementation date of 01 June 2019 be approved.