The Conservative
Group at Thanet District Council is calling for the Labour Leader, Cllr Clive
Hart to take responsibility for Thanet’s waste and recycling service away from
the current portfolio holder, Cllr Alan Poole.
Residents of Thanet
have reported numerous and significant problems with the service since the
introduction of the new Waste and Recycling regime in November. At December’s council meeting, Shadow
Cabinet Member, Cllr Simon Moores asked Cllr Poole whether, given existing
problems, he was confident that Thanet residents would get their waste
collected over the holiday period. Cllr
Poole answered that he was. Feedback
from residents across the Isle suggests that, in fact, there continues to be
significant failings in the service.
Cllr Moores said: “I
recognise that over Christmas there were issues with the weather, but given the
widespread concern over this issue, not just over the holiday period but since
the introduction of the new recycling regime, I think that the public have lost
faith in Cllr Pooole and it is time for a change of portfolio holder.”
Conservative Group Leader, Cllr Bob Bayford said:
“Incredibly, Cllr Poole has blamed Thanet residents for problems with the new
service and, clearly, contingency plans for an efficient service during the
Christmas and New Year period were not adequate. Cllr Hart has already
removed Cllr Poole from the Pleasurama debacle, due to his incompetent handling
of the situation, and it is imperative that he should now give responsibility
for Waste and Recycling to someone up to the task.”
Place the following words into a well known phrase or saying: Roost, Home, Chickens.
ReplyDeleteIronically, I recall Cllr Poole writing in the Gazette some years ago about the failures of the then Conservative administration to organise a better collection service over a period of heavy snow combined with the holiday season. He compared the TDC service then unfavourably with that he had just witnessed in Queensland, Australia, like Queensland really gets a lot of snow!
ReplyDeleteNow he has the baton, it would appear that it is us miserably public that cause the problems and it is not done to management at all. I would not be at all surprised to learn that Aussies are much better at putting their bins out on the right days.
The vast majority of people support increasing the percentage of recycling and reducing the use of landfill. BUT there has been more than 2 months to get the system bedded in and working properly. All the operational problems should have been sorted out by now. Hard for me to say this, but I support the Conservative call for Councillor Poole to be removed, especially after he placed the blame for shortcoming on residents, rather than looking the managerial causes for service failures. Councillor Poole receives £10,766 in special responsibility allowances each year on top of his £4,360 basic councillor allowance, This special responsibility allowance is paid to manage such as refuse collection. If he can't do the job he should go. if he is not removed by Council Leader Clive Hart then there must be a motion of no confidence in Cllr Poole at the next Council meeting
ReplyDeleteI seem to be the only person in Thanet who hasn't had any problems. Here in Westbrook our bins were emptied as scheduled on Tuesday morning, and the communal bin at the end of our road was even emptied on Boxing Day.
ReplyDeleteI dont use the weekly collection but prefer to use the communal bin round the corner and had no problems. The Council and critics both accept there were problems with the collections in some areas which were out of TDC's hands. Im not seeing a convincing case for removing responsibility.
ReplyDeleteI usually use the communal bin too, but the residents of the other six flats where I live (who all considerably younger but also far lazier) prefer to have overflowing bins rather than walk 40 ft.
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