Residents will not have failed to notice that for the third day running, their bins have not been collected. This is the result of the UDC having its vehicle operator license revoked, meaning no collections can take place until the situation is rectified. Needless to say, this is extremely disappointing and is having a serious impact on residents. At the time of publication there appears to be no clear idea of when the situation will be resolved.

Today we have written to Cllr Neil Reeve, portfolio holder for waste services to demand an explanation why the license was revoked, leaving rubbish to pile up across the district. We are asking Cllr Reeve for full transparency on how this happened, how long it will take to put this right, and what can be done to stop similar problems arising in future. We have been assisted by Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Harlow, Chris Vince, who has also written to Cllr Reeve, asking for answers. 

This is another example of maladministration from UDC; in recent years there have been a number of governance failures, such as the failure of auditors to sign off accounts and delays in finalising the local plan. These failures have real consequences. The result this week is overflowing bins – but it will not stop there unless lessons are learned and changes made.

This situation appears entirely avoidable, and suggests that urgent action is required by the administration not only to rectify the problem, but to ensure it cannot happen again. Residents need to know that the Council is doing everything it can to rectify the problem and exploring all possible avenues for re-starting bin collections in the meantime. 

Labour asks the administration to call an extraordinary meeting so that councillors and the public have an opportunity to question officers and Cllr Reeves, to get a clear answer on how this was allowed to happen. Accountability and transparency are most important when things go wrong – they help us to put them right. 

North West Essex Labour Party