Three London councils have unveiled plans to merge services and become a ‘super council' in a move which could set a precedent for how waste and recycling services are delivered in future.
And, in a joint statement released by the three councils, environmental services was named as one of the “three main areas” that the local authorities is set to investigate the options for merging. This could potentially alter the waste and recycling provision in the three London boroughs.
A spokeswoman for Westminster council – which is leading on the ‘super council' proposal – said details were currently vague but said: “It is potentially everything, including waste – there is potential for that at the moment. But I can't say it is more key than anything else, it could well be merged.”
The three councils currently all have different waste contractors, who all signed long-term deals within the last five years. The respective firms – Veolia Environmental Services, SITA UK and Serco – have vowed to work with the councils throughout the merger process.
SITA UK signed a 16-year deal with the London borough of Kensington & Chelsea in January 2005 to carry out waste and recycling collections for the West London borough. The deal, which was a continuation of its existing arrangements, targeted close working with council (see letsrecycle.com story).
Steve Holgate, general manager for the South East, SITA UK
Responding to the potential of the so-called ‘super council' and how it could impact their ongoing work, SITA said it was unsure of how it would be affected at this stage but acknowledged the need for savings to made in the wake of the Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) (see letsrecycle.com story).
Steve Holgate, general manager for the South East at SITA UK, said: “The CSR has challenged every local authority to review its spending and it is therefore understandable that Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster and Hammersmith and Fulham are looking at ways to reduce their costs and consolidate services where it makes sense.
“At this very early stage it is difficult to know what impact this will have on our contract with Kensington and Chelsea, however, we will continue to work with the authority to ensure the ongoing services in the borough.”
Savings
Similarly, Veolia Environmental Services, which was awarded a seven-year extension to its collection contract by Westminster in February (see letsrecycle.com story), has taken a conservative line on how the potential shake-up could affect them.
Speaking to letsrecycle.com, a spokesman said: “We have an ongoing commitment to provide waste, recycling and cleansing services on behalf of Westminster city council in one of the largest contracts of its kind in Europe. We are continually looking at ways of keeping costs down and will continue to work with the council to achieve this.”
Meanwhile, services firm Serco, which was awarded a seven-year, £140 million waste contract by Hammersmith & Fulham in February 2008 (see letsrecycle.com story), also stated that it was too soon to draw conclusions over what the impact will be.
A spokesman told letsrecycle.com: “It is too early to say how the council's announcement today may affect the services we deliver, but we remain committed to delivering the high standard of service both the council and the local community expect, a service that is recognised as providing excellent value for money for the tax payer.”
Disposal
The disposal of waste from Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea is already dealt with together under a deal between the Western Riverside Waste Authority and Cory Environmental.
However, waste from Westminster is disposed of separately by Veolia and it remains to be see how the various parties will work together if the functions are merged.
Joint
The ‘super council' proposal was presented to communities secretary Eric Pickles at a meeting of the three council leaders yesterday and is still subject to formal agreement among each individual authority. The councils have asked their respective chief executives to examine the proposal before reporting back in early 2011.
A joint statement issued by the councils said: “Our plans may be the first of their kind, but sharing of services in this way can no longer be viewed as a radical concept. It will soon become the norm for local authorities looking for innovative ways to keep costs down while delivering high quality front line services.”
It also stated that working groups would be formed to develop and investigate options for merging the councils' respective environmental services, family services and corporate services.
Under the proposals, each council would retain its democratic accountability and they have also stated that, while the proposal was in line with government plans to cut national deficit, that protecting frontline services was their priority.
Also in the joint statement, the councils said: “Ensuring we can provide a high standard of local services in today's tough economic climate means thinking differently about how we operate, concentrating on what's important to the people we serve and ensuring we continue to care for the most vulnerable in our community.
“While we won't rule anything out at this stage, we expect to focus quite quickly on a few major areas where sharing and merging services is viable and good for the public.”
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