**DEBATE** Council Tax reduction for Recyclers??

[xrachx]

I reckon that would be good what do you think?
They are quick enough to put it up but what about reductions for people that are actually trying to do some good?
How about a "pay as you dump" policy??
I would certainly recycle more if i thought it was going to reduce my Council Tax bill.

 

[mrs_tommo22]

Yes they bloody well should!!!

Also they expect us to recycle all our household rubbish and youd think they would try and keep it down!

My rent has just gone up 5 quid a week too, so my rent is now nearly £100 a week, fookin hell.

 

[Sherlock]

I'd recycle regardless. I just can't be throwing away things that can be recycled. I consider the environment and what I contribute to its deterioration and so on and its no contest for me.

I can't just throw it all out in the rubbish. Even if its inconvenient for me to have to go to the main recycling centre once a month, I still do it.

I also recycle at my local supermarket a few things like bottles, cans and paper as they have the skips in the car park. Lots of them do these days so there is no excuse really. Just because the council doesn't take it from the door doesn't mean we can't dispose of it elsewhere. We bought the stuff

Elsewhere in Europe they recycle way more than we do in the UK. They also have a bottle charge on glass (beer and water bottles etc) and plastic bottles. So when you buy beer, water or cola you pay a small change per glass or plastic bottle. They are more heavy duty plastic but as they are reused over and over, its better all round. Each time you go to the supermarket, you take your plastic and glass bottles with you and get the money back. Usually its taken off your shopping bill, but you can have cash. Its no hardship and most everyone does it. I really liked the concept when I lived on the continent. I'd be happy to see the same thing done here.

 

[Flame]

I think you are right, however we are given extra bins so are encouraged to recycle and the council tax is going up by 3%. And the pay as you dump thing they were talking of doing here last i heard only we pay them by the kilo we chuck away rather than they pay us.

 

[Lou]

But there are alot of people that don't recycle properly who would receive a reduction unfairly when infact they are potentially costing the council more money than if they didn't recycle atall! I remember reading somewhere that if just one wheelie bin emptied into a recycling truck isn't completely recyclable material then the whole load is ruined. Not sure how true that is but we've had our green bin left full and stickers put on the lid before because they have lifted the lid and seen non-recyclable rubbish before they have put in on the truck to be emptied and rightly refused to take it away.

 

[jenna]

I think they should lower council tax and start taxing big companies that package everything in plastic then a plastic tray then a cardboard box then a plastic wrapper Pee's me off when it takes 5minutes just to get the food out the bag!
Its fair enough to say we should recycle which we do but if we got less stuff to recycle it would be much easier. It doesnt help that our paper bin gets taken once a month which makes it inpossible for us to recycle paper every day because it gets full.
Council tax is a rip off anyway, the government isnt interested in recycleing or 'global warning'. Why are those reusable bags so expencive? and why tax solar panels? its like £100 for one!! I think if they were serious, and these things could do a lot of good they would make them easier and cheaper for everyone. Its just another way to get more tax.

 

[Lou]

I agree that alot of packaging on products is a bit over the top but to be fair if we bought something that was lightly packaged but damaged then we'd be the first to complain. I contacted my council when I had Isaac to ask if I could recycle his forumla tubs, the cardboard ones, not tins, and they said no because of the waxy coating on them. What a complete waste! I kept loads and used them for anything I could think of, cat biscuits, buttons/needles/cotton, Isaac's crayons, anything rather than throw them away! I'm not sure if the local schools collect things like that for craft? A few mums save their yoghurt pots for craft at playgroup.

I don't think a council tax reduction is the answer though. I think better placed council funds is the answer. I mean how do blocks of flats recycle? Its bad enough having one bin in a kitchen let alone 2 or 3? Maybe the council could provide space saving ways for council flat tenants to recycle without having to take the lift down to the ground floor everytime they have an empty bottle to put in the recycling ?

I dunno

 

[kellie80]

I would defiantly recycle more if I had that incentive. Where I live though we have no extra bins for recycling and no collections to pick any up and the nearest recycling point that I know of is a few miles away. I would quite happily recycle everything I could if I had somewhere to put it. I know it just sounds like an excuse be when your already falling over each other in the house its so small we have no where to store it.

 

[Melanie]

Elsewhere in Europe they recycle way more than we do in the UK. They also have a bottle charge on glass (beer and water bottles etc) and plastic bottles. So when you buy beer, water or cola you pay a small change per glass or plastic bottle. They are more heavy duty plastic but as they are reused over and over, its better all round. Each time you go to the supermarket, you take your plastic and glass bottles with you and get the money back. Usually its taken off your shopping bill, but you can have cash. Its no hardship and most everyone does it. I really liked the concept when I lived on the continent. I'd be happy to see the same thing done here.

We have that here in Budapest. You can take your bottles back the shop for you refund or you can just put them in the recylce bin and not claim the money.
You have to recycle here, your dustins arent big enough not to (on purpose) but its so easy that its not a big deal. Every few streets you will find a set of recycling bins so you never have far to go. Thea and i walk up the hill to ours three times a week with a bag of bottles, papers, cans etc. The UK could learn a lot from other European countries.
Im not sure if i agree that recycling should get you a tax break though, it should just be done as a matter of course, i dont see why people need an insentive surely your kids future on this planet should be enough.

 

[Misslarue]

The government doesn't praise good behaviour it only punishes bad. Its like a strict school maam!!
They won't give us back anything....................council tax has gone up over 90% in the last 10 years. Thats 3 times higher than the rate of inflation The only thing you can expect is more tax and more fines.
Even if they did consider it, only a small percentage of council tax goes to rubbish. I think its less than 10%, last time I looked
The majority of it goes to the borough rather than the county council.

I like the idea of having collection points every where. Surely that would cut the cost of collecting the rubbish too.

 

[Lou]

I don't consider recycling good behaviour, I think it everyones duty to do what they can to reduce landfill. Remember aswell that the government and councils still have to deal with the minority of people that think its acceptable to throw rubbish in the street or out of car windows. We recently went for a day out to Dover to see the ferries and on the way home we were shcoked at the amount of rubbish at the roadside on the way from the port to the motorway. It was disgusting! And just to add insult to injury the majority of it was plastic bottles and aluminium cans that could be recycled