October 30, 2007
To bin or not to bin…
Has Gordo had a change of heart?
Last week, Downing Street let it be known - with a nudge and a wink - that proposals for so-called "bin taxes" were shelved, dead in the water even.
Rubbish charging plans, under which households that failed to recycle would be charged upto £30 a year more in council tax while the greenest families would be better off, were unlikely to be introduced.
Now, Hilary Benn, environment secretary, has confirmed that the forthcoming climate change bill will include powers for councils to begin trials of "incentive" schemes to encourage recycling. Proposals, according to officials, will be announced "in due course".
On the face of it, it looks as though Mr Benn may have won a small battle with the Number Ten sceptics, including Mr Brown.
Don’t bet on it though. Read the department’s statement yesterday and there is no clue as to what the incentives might be - financial or otherwise. Nor is there any indication of how soon ministers might bring forward details of the pilot schemes. If Mr Benn knew what he was doing, why the mystery?
For what it’s worth, my suspicion is that, if and when something does emerge, it will be vastly watered down. Mr Brown usually gets his way - and, so far, despite the noise he has made about the environment, he has displayed remarkable timidity in this area. As far as the prime minister is concerned, the public will buy Conservative accusations that Labour has dreamed up another "hated tax on families".
His spokesman was typically guarded at this morning’s briefing for lobby journalists: it was "a complex issue which will have to be considered carefully". It was important, he said, to "strike the right balance".
Watch this space - but don’t hold your breath.
