Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Aberdeen budget: Leaders accused of ‘complete hypocrisy’ after voting to keep brown bin charges

Steve Delaney has opposed the garden waste "tax" for many years
Liberal Democrat councillor Steve Delaney has spent years fighting the Aberdeen garden waste permit system he voted for in yesterday's budget talks. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

Since Aberdeen’s garden waste permit system was introduced in 2019, the city’s Liberal Democrat group has condemned it as an “unjustifiable cash-grab” – and members have even vowed never to pay it.

A devoted “axe the garden tax” section can be found on Lib Dem councillor Steve Delaney’s own website, where he rubbishes the parties responsible for it.

Abolishing the levy was a key part of the group’s manifesto at last May’s council elections, and the “commitment” was etched in stone when they formed a power-sharing deal with the SNP.

The snippet of tbe power-sharing document in question.

The document contains an agreement to “repeal the unfair garden tax charge”, which was added at the behest of the minority members of the coalition.

But when councillors met on Wednesday to set the budget for 2023-24, the four Lib Dem members voted to maintain the very policy they have spent years fighting.

Ian Yuill has been hoping to slam the lid on the brown bin charge for four years. Image: Clarke Cooper/DC Thomson

Why was the Aberdeen garden waste permit so controversial?

Under the system, rolled out in August 2019, households pay a yearly £30 for tamper-proof stickers to show they should have their garden waste picked up.

As the charges loomed, an Evening Express poll showed 80% of indignant Aberdeen readers would refuse to pay.

Liberal Democrat group leader Ian Yuill has long crusaded against the policy.

Over the years he has called it a “short-sighted cash grab” that is “unpopular because it’s unjustifiable”.

And he warned that it could even damage the council’s eco credentials, as it would lead to more garden waste being secretly stashed in black bags and taken to be incinerated.

Decision to keep brown bin charges in Aberdeen budget after years of controversy

Pledging never to pay it “on a point of principle”, Mr Delaney voiced fears it would mean garden waste is fly-tipped.

And his website features a section slating his current SNP stablemates for previously trying to increase it to £35.

Many residents reacted angrily to the charges being rolled out. Image: Clarke Cooper/DC Thomson

And in a post when the charges came into force, Mr Yuill fumed: “The council should be encouraging people to recycle – not charging them to recycle.”

Lib Dems vow to eradicate brown bin charges – eventually

After this week’s crunch meeting, they were accused of “reneging on their pledge”.

And North East Conservative MSP Douglas Lumsden accused the Lib Dems of “complete hypocrisy” on Twitter.

Speaking to The P&J, Mr Delaney stressed that his group remains committed to eventually consigning the costs to the compost heap.

Mr Delaney remains opposed to the policy. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

He hopes to be able to scale back the fee next year, before removing it completely after that.

This vision would mean residents continue to pay until at least the summer of 2025.

Mr Delaney confirmed he has never paid the fee, opting to take his garden waste to a recycling centre to dispose of it.

Ian Yuill at the budget meeting yesterday. Image: Kenny Elrick/DC Thomson

Mr Yuill told us that, “in an ideal world”, he would have done away with it.

But concessions had to be made when balancing the books, and ensuring schools and other vital services continue to receive sufficient cash.

He added: “We had to save £47 million, that meant making some difficult decisions.

“Our commitment is still to abolish it, and we will do it as quickly as we can.

“But this is the worst situation I have seen in almost 29 years as a councillor.

Brown bin charges could have increased in Aberdeen budget

By 2021, it emerged that 35,000 households had signed up to the scheme – generating £900,000 for council coffers.

Ahead of the budget meeting, the finance department suggested the cost of a permit be increased to bring in a further £129,000.

Like it or hate it, the scheme has been a money-spinner. Image: Clarke Cooper/DC Thomson

That would have brought the annual income from the brown bin charges to about £1 million.

And while opting to maintain the “unfair” system, the administration rejected the idea of upping the price.

Announcing the freeze, SNP finance convener Alex McLellan added that the partnership “will work towards abolishing it over the years to come”.

You can watch the budget meeting here, or buy a garden waste permit here.

Conversation