Staffordshire ‘Tip tax’ charges will be reviewed

In November the Tory-controlled Staffordshire County Council prompted uproar by introducing charges for DIY rubbish at household waste centres.

The fees were branded 'illegal' by Labour councillor Sue Woodward who demanded they be suspended immediately.

She argued they were in contravention of the Government's recent anti-litter strategy released in recent weeks.

While more than 1,000 people also backed a petition calling to 'scrap the Staffordshire Tipping Tax'.

Now, despite the Conservative's landslide victory in the polls extending their majority, leader Philip Atkins has stated the fees will be looked at again.

He said: "We will be reviewing the tip charges when the Government comes out with the new guidelines on household waste.

"We don’t believe we are doing anything wrong at the moment, but we can have a look at that.”

Councillor Sue Woodward, leader of the Labour and Co-operative Group, welcomed the announcement saying it was 'good' news but criticised the council for introducing the fees in the first place saying they were another way of taxing the electorate.

She said: "I am surprised the Government has not issued the guidelines to Staffordshire County Council yet as they have to most other authorities. We said from the start this was an unfair tax which has had implications on fly tipping and also creating difficulty for the operative in deciding what is DIY waste.

"So we will be keeping the focus on that.

"It is an additional charge residents are being asked to pay over and above their council tax."

The new fees mean people have to pay £3 to dump a bag of soil or rubble, including items such as slabs, tiles and sinks.

A £4 charge has also been brought in for a sheet of plasterboard and single tyres.

Upon introducing the fees environment chief Gill Heath justified the move by saying it was in line with what other authorities had done.

She said at the time: "Waste generated by DIY, home improvements or extensive landscaping of gardens is not legally regarded as household rubbish and, like many other councils, we've decided to cover the cost of processing it.

"At the same time reducing the cost of recycling will allow us to focus on supporting the most vulnerable people in society and statutory services in Staffordshire."

The controversy certainly did not seem to harm her chances at the polls on Thursday as she swept to victory in her Leek Rural division obtaining 1,421 more votes than her nearest rival Labour's Philip Barks.