Sue Robb of 4Children talks to Julie Laughton and Alison Britton from the Department for Education about the role of childminders in delivering the 30 hours free entitlement.
The Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee has warned that a balance must be struck between local authorities and councils on waste strategy.
MPs say that the strategy risks placing a needless burden on local authorities by enforcing a prescriptive national approach to recycling and waste management. Waste collection is one of the most tangible services that local communities receive from their councils and it is they who will be accountable at the ballot box.
The government is seeking to require local authorities to introduce between one and three recycling bins, on top of residual waste, food waste and garden waste bins. As such, every household would be required to have between four and six bins.
The committee has now expressed doubts that councils want to ask their residents to store six separate bins outside or inside their homes, particularly in urban areas where space is likely to be more limited, saying that even four receptacles—the minimum the government is proposing—will be challenging in many circumstances.
Therefore, MPs are proposing that the ambitious targets for recycling must allow local authorities greater flexibility in how they are achieved and that local authorities should retain as much flexibility as possible to determine the most effective waste collection strategies for their communities.
Furthermore, council representatives should be allowed to scrutinise the data that informed the government’s proposals and assess if additional funding is likely to be needed. The government will also need to work with the industry to ensure that the right infrastructure is in the right places, and set-up at a reasonable cost. The government should also commit to covering any costs for infrastructure improvement so that it does not get passed on to local authorities, producers or consumers.
Clive Betts, chair of the committee, said: “The government has recognised the need for a comprehensive Waste Strategy with ambitious targets for improving recycling rates and reducing our impact on the environment. However, we believe that the government has set out the wrong approach for achieving these objectives. The government should not seek to dictate that which is best determined by local decision makers.
“In determining how often waste should be collected, the number of recycling bins or what services should be charged for, the government appears to have forgotten that what works in rural areas may not be suitable for cities. Local authorities understand what the challenges are in their areas and should be given the freedom to tailor their approach to meet them.
“Equally, the government must ensure that the funding is there that will allow local authorities to rise to the challenge. It will require significant investment to improve recycling infrastructure, and ongoing waste management costs arising from the government’s proposals will be higher. The government has indicated it will provide more funding, but they must demonstrate that this will be adequate in the long-term. Local authorities are already struggling, they cannot be expected to shoulder further burden without extra resourcing.”
Sue Robb of 4Children talks to Julie Laughton and Alison Britton from the Department for Education about the role of childminders in delivering the 30 hours free entitlement.
Fireco is a one-stop shop for trusted and compliant fire safety solutions! Our comprehensive product range includes smart fire door closers and retainers, notification systems, as well as fire door installation and inspection services. With our cloud-based technology, we offer the convenience of remote monitoring and management of connected devices, ensuring efficient and effective fire safety measures. By choosing Fireco, you can trust that our solutions are tailored to meet complex compliance requirements and provide you with peace of mind.
UKREiiF has quickly become a must-attend in the industry calendar for Government departments and local authorities.
The organisers of the world’s largest dedicated hydrogen event, World Hydrogen 2024 Summit & Exhibition have announced it’s return to Rotterdam in May 2024, with an expansion of a whole extra summit day. Sustainable Energy Council (SEC) are partnering with the Government of the Netherlands, the Province of Zuid-Holland, the City of Rotterdam, and the Port of Rotterdam to host an extended, larger scale Summit in 2024, to expand the event to meet the surging demand.
At GeoEnergy Design, we're on a mission to disrupt the traditional way heating and cooling ha
Professor Harith Alani, director of the Knowledge Management Institute at the Open University explains how AI can be used for good and bad.
Alex Lawrence, head of health & social care, techUK sets out techUK’s Five Point Plan for CareTech.