Liberal Democrat Councillor condemns Devon County 'fire sale'
Liberal Democrat Councillor Alan Connett has condemned the sale of council property by Devon County Council as being 'at the worst time' and as a 'fire-sale'
10 Oct 2023
Scrap Devon's 'tip tax' now and make it an early Christmas present to the people of Devon.
AC
by Alan Connett
27 Nov 2023
Scrap Devon's 'tip tax' now and make it an early Christmas present to the people of Devon.
That's the call from Liberal Democrat councillor Alan Connett who has urged the Leader of Devon County Council to act now and scrap the tip tax straight away.
New Government regulations will scrap the 'tip tax' from January anyway, says Cllr Connett who represents the Exminster and Haldon areas at County Hall.
He said:" At long last the Government has acted to scrap the tip tax' which has resulted in thousands of householders across the county paying the use the tips and recycling centres when disposing of their DIY waste..
"It's been a good earner for the county council which estimates the tip tax brings in around £1`million a year for the County Hall coffers.
"With just a few weeks left to go before the tip tax is finally scrapped under Government orders, the county council could play Father Christmas and scrap charges throughout December in the lead up to them ending for good on New Year's Day. The alternative is that they opt to be the Christmas Grinch and insist the charges stay in place in the final few weeks to Christmas.
"Householder with DIY waste to get rid of may want to think about holding on until the New Year, when it will be free - unless County Hall scrap the charges straight away," added Cllr Connett.
The Government has issued new regulations about how much DIY waste can be taken to council tips free of charge.
The new rules say the waste has to be less than 100 litres and capable of being fitted into two 50 litres bags, or a single article of waste no larger than 2000mmx750mmx700mm. Households will be limited to four single visits over a four week period to dispose of DIY waste.
Cllr Connett added:"While I am delighted the tip taxes have been scrapped, I think the new rules will be a headache for any council to enforce. Presumably, they will need a system to record how many DIY waste visits a household has made over a four week period.
"Devon County Council says the tip tax currently brings in around £1m a year towards the costs of running the service. It seems that councils may face a double whammy of losing the income they should never have had in the first place and now facing the possibility of extra costs as they police the Government's new regulations.
"For householders though, it is good news that the tip tax has finally been sent to the scrap yard itself and I hope County Hall will find the good cheer to scrap it straight away as a gesture of goodwill to the people of Devon".
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