An army of wardens will enforce the rigorous rules which go with fortnightly rubbish collections.
The bin police will have the powers to slap £100 on-the-spot fines on householders who put out rubbish too early or leave the lid open.
And they will be set quotas for handing out penalties – raising fears that they will behave like car-clamping gangs.
The wardens are the latest development in the drive to end weekly rubbish collections. Fortnightly collections of general refuse are being used by as many as four in 10 of councils in England.
They include South Staffordshire, Cannock Chase, Lichfield, Stafford and Wyre Forest.
Wolverhampton, Walsall, Dudley and Sandwell are currently committed to weekly collections.
David Miliband’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has already laid the groundwork for council rubbish collection to be handed to non-elected quangos, which could seek fortnightly collections to cut costs.
Yesterday it was revealed that Defra gave councils the go-ahead to set up their own wheelie bin police in guidance on the use of fixed penalty notices for environment enforcement smuggled out last month.
As has become usual with key Whitehall moves in the growing controversy over rubbish collections, no public announcement was made.
The Bin Police will wear uniforms and operate in the same way as traffic wardens – but there are no rules to prevent councils hiring ill-trained and unsuitable individuals for the job.
The Defra guidelines say that bin wardens must be trained in the law and how to deal with unco-operative or violent householders. But a training course set up by the department itself lasts just four days.
Mr Miliband’s guidelines set out that a council can ask police community support officers to do the job or it could authorise contracted external staff to undertake the work on its behalf.
Defra recommends that wardens should have passed criminal records checks. But there are no firm rules that inists they have to be made.
16 Comments
When the local elections come round ask the candidates how they voted on this issue! the solution is in your hands, do a search and find out how much money they claim to represent us you will be amazed at what they get in expenses. Use your vote accordingly
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who are these Faceless people
who are imposing these rules?
is it not time something was done
by central govenment,to step in and give the people a say in these matters?
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Do we get to slap fines on the refuse collectors when they don’t pick our rubbish up on time?
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I have 1 question what do we pay council tax for then? its another scam for the council to get more money out of you to pay for some rich boss who can’t get enough money.
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A reduction in services should be accompanied by a refund & reduction in council tax payments. I don’t think the employment of ‘bin police’ is the best use of the council tax payer’s money (should have used that money to carry on with weekly collections). Further, this has the potential of turning into another revenue stream for the local council - are there any safeguards for householders from overzealous bin police who wants to achieve targets?
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What a load of rubbish !!!! a total waste of tax payers money so they are going to fine us for having the lids open on the bins, one gust of wind when the bin is out we get slapped with a fine What a farce !!!!!!!!!!!
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How pathetic, what’s stopping these wardens from opening a bin lid themselves and slapping a fine on it if their targets are not met????
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LOL, this is so funny its painful.
The councils have reduced refuse collection to save money? Yet the money they save is going to pay for the bin police. Wow, it just shows you dont need to be educated to get a good job in an office …. you just need 1 brain cell and a head full of screwball ideas.
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How about a reduction for those houses who recycle most- can’t see that happening and anyway the main people who will get collared for this is those of us who still get up every day to work as the whining long term unemployed and single mothers won’t have to pay.
Will council tax bills go down? Will we get a £100 paid to us when they fail to collect our rubbish?
Like Jeff said, ask your councillors for their views.
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Innocent till proven guilty has gone out of the window with this government.
Now you will be fined even if you swear you shut the lid. What next? cameras on the bins is the only way to prove who didn’t close the lod. Unenforceable in all but a police state. One new law too many.
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Pete, i’m sorry but under current regulations you are guilty until you prove yourself innocent beyond reasonable doubt.
And one more thing - the police state is coming, look up the “ID database issues”.
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I fill my pathetic black bin bag up with rubbish left behind from ignorant binmen what a bloody cheek,the rest of my bag gets filled up with rubbish,chip papers etc dump out of car windows and passing louts,put some asylum seekers in bags and dump them maybe then we will get the service we pay for,there would be plenty of money for council then you nitwits IT MAKES MY BLOOD BOIL as jim royal would say MY ARSE!
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“The bin police will have the powers to slap £100 on-the-spot fines on householders who put out rubbish too early”
How early is too early ?
What a complete waste of money. This is disgusting.
Use your vote wisely on Thursday !!
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what every hard worker should do is refuse to pay council tax an stick together i live in a flat an by a canal im sure the rats will av a field day maybe i should join the unemployed an then it would,nt matter everything would be free and i would get more respect from our so called government.
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Id like to see some Bin Warden slap me a fine!
They would end up head first in the bin.In 10 years my council tax has gone from £50 a month to £102 a month..and the council cant find any other fab way to waste my council tax…Ermm does a warden have the right to fine a cat when it gets the bin open for a midnight snack!
I wonder how impressive a cv would look with last job : Bin Warden…lol…way up there with Milk Monitor.
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A few weeks ago my bin was emptied and along with my rubbish the bin men also decided to allow my bin lid to be broken off into the back of their wagon.As im working i find it difficult to actually call any one from the council about it as most of them have gone home before i can make it to my phone.
so im just wondering ,as i have no lid on my bin thanks to the council does this mean ill be fined £100 per bin collection ??
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