Storm over unemptied bin

ANGER is growing over a waste bin outside a Warrington convenience store which has not been emptied by the borough council since November.
Store owner Ulpash Patel emptied it himself just before Christmas – but within 12 hours it was full again.
The bin is outside his store off Pasture Lane, Longbarn and for more than 30 years it was emptied by the council.
But local councillor Geoff Settle (pictured) believes a decision was taken to stop emptying it after the council transferred its local council estate to a housing association.
He said: “Trying to find out who is responsible for what in the Longbarn area is like trying to unravel a patchwork quilt.
“I have only recently established that the path from Pasture Lane to Woolston Grange is the responsibility of Muir Housing. They have now agreed to sort it out, remove rubbish from the path, the bushes and the kick about area.”
Nearby resident Tom Hallet said he was trying to find out who was responsible for emptying the bin outside the store.
“Are we, the residents of Longbarn, being forgotten again?”
Cllr Settle said: “I have known the Patel brothers ever since they took over the shop. They are very popular, friendly, hard-working lads and have become an established part of the community.
“It would appear the bin is not being emptied because it is no longer part of the council’s estate.
“The consequence of this is an overflowing public bin with litter scattered all around. This is simply not acceptable – it is a health hazard.”
He said on one occasion, the Patel brothers were given a wheelie bin by a nearby resident and transferred waste into it. But when they took it to a council bin wagon it was refused on the grounds it was not domestic waste.