Bin collections became a focus point for many districts and boroughs in the region, following Liverpool’s controversial decision to bring its waste services in-house.
Scoring a goal for the public sector camp, Steve Munby – Liverpool’s cabinet member for neighbourhood services – suggested waste companies had a ‘monopoly’ on waste collections which needs to be redressed.
His stance on in-house collections won support when Wirral South MP Alison McGovern appeared on the North West BBC Sunday Politics show.
The Labour politician argued councils would not need to feel the need to reject outsourcing if central government agreed a longer term funding settlement – attacking the year-on-year financial uncertainty authorities currently face.
However the waste contractor for Ms McGovern’s constituency – Biffa Municipal – was keen to defend the interests of the industry.
Managing director Roger Edwards slammed Mr Munby’s comments as ‘utter nonsense’ and cited the good work it was doing to raise the quality of waste services in Liverpool’s closest neighbour.
And, coming in from the outside, the nearby Conservative-run council of Trafford has been extolling the benefits of outsourcing on a tight budget. The authority is expected to rank within the top 10 for recycling performance in 2014/15.
With so much political point scoring, is the North West a warm up for what the rest of England can expect once DCLG’s 30% spending cuts kick in? For both sides of the divide, there is still everything to play for.
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