Local councils in the UK failed to complete over 10,000 bin collections each working day last year, citing various reasons such as strikes, safety regulations, and even favorable weather conditions for disappointing taxpayers nationwide.
A total of 2.5 million bin collections were missed across the UK in 2024, significantly impacting the essential public service delivery by local authorities.
Residents in Yorkshire and the Humber experienced the most severe impact from inadequate collection services. An analysis of council data revealed that the region saw over 312,000 missed bin collections, translating to 57 missed collections per 1,000 residents, a rate double that of the North East of England and Northern Ireland.
Barnsley in South Yorkshire emerged as the worst-performing council, recording the highest number of missed bin collections in 2024. The inefficiency in rubbish collection services forced the council to allocate £1.8 million for additional staff recruitment earlier this year.
Councilor James Higginbottom, the environment spokesperson for Barnsley council, attributed the missed collections to various disruptions, including severe weather, fires at waste facilities, and adjustments in crew practices for safety compliance.
Barnsley also cited an increase in garden waste weight due to favorable weather conditions as a contributing factor to the high number of missed collections. The council hinted that differences in counting methods among local authorities could explain its poor performance compared to others.
Despite the shortcomings, the council approved a significant budget of £1.8 million to address the poor bin collection service, with Cllr Higginbottom noting an improvement in service performance.
Analysis of Freedom of Information requests to over 350 local authorities across the UK revealed that councils under Labour control had a higher rate of missed bin collections compared to Conservative or Liberal Democrat-controlled councils in 2024. The data showed that Labour-led areas had 41 missed collections per 1,000 residents, while Tory-led councils had 28 and Liberal Democrat-led councils had 34.
Joanna Marchong, investigations campaign manager at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, expressed shock at the widespread missed bin collections, emphasizing the need for councils to fulfill their service obligations efficiently.
In response, the Local Government Association defended councils, highlighting high public satisfaction with waste services and the majority of bin collections being completed without issues.
In other regions, Belfast in Northern Ireland reported the most missed bin collections, Glasgow had the highest total in Scotland, and Swansea topped the list in Wales. Notably, several councils in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland did not provide data on missed bin collections.
Stockton-on-Tees council stood out for not missing a single bin collection in 2024, showcasing exceptional performance in waste management. The article also listed the councils with the highest number of missed bin collections in each region and nation across the UK.