Harrow Council hits out at bin spying claims by Big Brother Watch (From Harrow Times)

Harrow Council hits out at bin spying claims by Big Brother Watch

10:19am Wednesday 10th March 2010

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HARROW Council has rubbished claims there are plans to begin “surveillance” of residential dustbins.

Pressure group Big Brother Watch claims councils across the country plan to use microchips installed in bins to monitor what residents throw away and hit them with additional charges.

Harrow Council has ordered a number of bins with the chips installed, at £1 each, but does not currently use them to monitor waste.

The authority admits it may begin using the chips at some stage, but categorically denied any plans for a “pay as you throw” scheme.

Fergus Sheppard, a spokesman for the council, said the electronic devices may be used to monitor waste but only for educational purposes, to allow officers to encourage residents to recycle.

There are already plans to use the chips to monitor trade waste following a decision on August 3, but the system is not yet in place.

Councillor Susan Hall, responsible for the environment, said: “Chips in bins give us the potential to see how residents are doing with recycling and, where we can offer some extra help, advise householders on ways they can recycle more.

“The chips in Harrow's bins are there for education, not enforcement. We are not in the business of spying on what residents throw away – we have never fined a householder over bins and we don't intend to start now.”

Alex Deane, director of Big Brother Watch, said: “Councils are waiting until the public aren’t watching to begin surveillance on our waste habits, intruding into people’s private lives and introducing punitive taxes on what we throw away.

“The British public doesn’t want this technology, these fines or this intrusion. If local authorities have no intention to monitor our waste then they should end the surreptitious installation of these bin microchips.”

A report prepared by the council in August states the case for monitoring trade waste “does not require the early introduction of charging as efficiencies will still be obtained from the current operation.

“A decision on charging by weight can be undertaken at a further point in time.”

Over 10 years there is a predicted cost of £556,000 for the project and savings are expected to be just under £1m.

The council was met with opposition from within its own ranks when it bought the microchippped bins. Councillor Jeremy Zeid (Cons/Kenton West), an outspoken critic of the system, removed the devices from his own bins.

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