The Council’s tax on residents who want to get rid of their bulky waste items must be scrapped, Liberal Democrat councillors have demanded.

Following government figures which show that Southwark has the fourth worst level of flytipping in England, Liberal Democrats have called for the Council to make reporting flytips easier and for more regular clean-ups of streets and estates.

One year ago Southwark Labour councillors introduced a new £16 charge for all residents who wanted to have their bulky waste items collected from their home. Using the Council’s own figures, flytipping on Southwark’s streets has increased by 10%.

Liberal Democrat councillors have also highlighted how:

• the new bulky waste collection service can only be ordered online and only by those residents with a debit or credit card. This excludes a large number of Southwark residents without access to the internet or a bank account
• the Council has removed recycling points from public areas such as supermarket car parks because of the level of flytipping.

At a council meeting last month, Southwark Liberal Democrats called on the Labour administration to scrap the bulky waste collection fee, make it easier to order bulky waste collections and count all flytipping incidents. Labour councillors changed the order of business deliberately though so that the motion could not be debated.

 Liberal Democrat Environment Spokesperson, Councillor Rosie Shimell, said:

“Southwark now has the fourth worst level of flytipping in the whole of England and Labour’s new bulky waste tax is just making things worse.

“Everyone can see that Southwark’s streets and estates are getting dirtier. Despite our warnings though, ruling Labour councillors don’t seem to make the connection between their new fee and increased flytipping.

“Liberal Democrats are fighting residents’ corner and are calling on Labour to drop their £16 waste tax.”