We have now seen the Conservatives’ real commitment to consultation. The garden waste consultation saw unprecedented levels of response with just six per cent of respondents voting in favour of introducing additional charges for garden waste collections.
Wiltshire Conservatives’ response to this was to ignore all that the public said and announce the imposition of a new garden waste tax of £40 per household across the county – the equivalent of a 3.3 per cent rise in council tax.
Coupled with a shopping list of cuts including concessionary travel, support of the arts, the popular Connect2 bus and the Wiltshire Music Service, this is a truly horrific slap in the face to the people.
This new garden waste tax will stop many using their garden waste bins, resulting in an increase in landfill usage and a drop in recycling which goes against the core aims of Wiltshire Council. I sincerely hope that the administration will reconsider its position and give the people of Wiltshire what they voted for rather than a huge hike in their council bills.
Coun Jon Hubbard, Leader, Wiltshire Council Liberal Democrat Group.
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