Council throws out Waste Service Criticism

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Thu 16th Jul 2009

At yesterday's meeting of Leeds City Council Cllr James Monaghan, Executive Board Member for Environmental Services rejected claims from Labour councillors that the administration was failing to provide an effective service and described their so-called waste pledge as "just politicking".

Following a robust debate the council voted for a Liberal Democrat amendment confirming its commitment to the waste strategy approved in 2007, and to a weekly waste collection.

Cllr Monaghan (Lib Dem, Headingley) said at the meeting:

"This administration has made substantial progress in working towards the aims and objectives of the waste strategy, and I will continue that work. We have more than doubled the recycling rate in this city since 2004, from 14.6% to 30.4% last year. We remain committed to our target of 50% recycling and in order to achieve that we are increasing opportunities for local people to recycle more and more of their waste.

Speaking directly to the Labour Group at the meeting he added:

"It is worth noting that the only national political party proposing bin taxes and fortnightly waste collections is the Labour Party. Locally you [Leeds City Council Labour Group] have no plan to deal with this city's waste - how on earth can the voters of Leeds take a waste pledge proposed by you seriously?"