More people have applied for brown bin permits in Dundee, it has emerged – days after the council claimed the numbers had dropped.
The Courier revealed last week how data – obtained through freedom of information legislation – showed 21,099 people had applied for permits between January and May this year.
The council’s own statistics claimed this was down from 24,058 applications during the same time period in 2021 and 23,681 in 2020.
The cost of the permits rose from £35 to £40 this year – with plans to raise the cost again next year.
It led to claims from Lib Dem councillor Fraser Macpherson that the price hike had led to an “inevitable” drop in permit applications.
But SNP council leader John Alexander suggested there were several reasons, including fewer people doing gardening following the lifting of Covid lockdowns.
Data now shows rise in bin permit applications
However, on Monday, the council contacted The Courier to say its own data had been incorrect, issuing an apology.
The council now says the number of applications has actually risen by about 1,000 – with the following number of applications made in the first five months of each year since the permit was introduced:
- 2020 – 19,796
- 2021 – 19,788
- 2022 – 20,746
The council introduced the price hike for this year in an attempt to raise an extra £100,000.
These new stats show the council has now made an extra £137,260 so far this year thanks to the rise in applications.
Mr Macpherson said the error is an example of “one hand not knowing what the other is doing”.
He added: “Dundee City Council seems to be all over the place in not knowing how many brown bin permits it has sold.
“One minute they say permit sales have dropped; the next minute they are claiming they have gone up.
“The Liberal Democrat group maintains our opposition to charging for garden waste collection. It is a tax on recycling and that’s wrong.
“What’s more, the charge keeps increasing.
“When the SNP first imposed it, the charge was £35 per brown bin per year, the SNP then increased it to £40 and they are now pushing through a further increase to £42.50 next April.
“The Dundee Liberal Democrat group will continue to oppose this SNP tax on recycling.”
The Courier has contacted Mr Alexander for comment after the new statistics were revealed.
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