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South Glos council tax to rise by another 4.99 percent as annual budget agreed

Council tax in South Gloucestershire will increase by 4.99 percent from April 2024 after councillors approved next year’s budget. The financial plan includes “investing in cost-of-living support”, as well as taking action on climate change and helping residents cut down on their energy bills. The latest increase follows on the heels of an identical hike of 4.99 percent that took effect from April 2023.

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Green bin fee to double and car parking charges on the way in South Glos budget

Council leaders are set to rubber-stamp plans to double the cost of garden waste collections and introduce car parking charges in South Glos despite huge opposition from residents. Cuts to the council tax reduction scheme (CTRS) – benefits that help the poorest households pay the bill – and shorter library opening hours are also included in the local authority’s annual budget.

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South Glos Council warns of “incredibly difficult” choices ahead for next year’s budget

South Glos Council’s joint Lib Dem & Labour Cabinet will meet next week to consider proposals for next year’s budget that include details of “incredibly difficult” decisions to reduce spending and increase charges. The new draft budget does not propose to make new savings, but does provide details of cost-cutting that was approved in the Conservatives’ last budget agreed in February.

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South Glos bin strikes called off as union members vote to accept 10% pay increase

A long-running strike by waste and recycling operatives across South Gloucestershire is officially over after union members voted to accept a new, improved 10 percent pay increase. Kerbside collections had been disrupted since Monday 12th June as around 150 employees of SUEZ, the council’s waste contractor, took industrial action in support of a 15 percent pay claim.

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Bin and recycling collections to resume as strike action paused for workers’ ballot

Kerbside waste and recycling collections in South Glos are set to resume in full from Monday (31st July) after strike action was suspended. The Little Stoke Sort It recycling centre, which has been closed due to a lack of staff during the strike, will reopen from the same date. Unite the Union says it is suspending industrial action for three days while it ballots its members on an improved pay offer.

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South Glos bin strike: Council inaction is creating a “public health crisis”, claims Tory

Council leaders have created an “environmental and public health crisis” through lack of action over bin strikes in South Gloucestershire, it is claimed. Waste has quickly piled up and recycling ‘bring banks’ are overwhelmed as residents have no kerbside collections other than black bins, while one of the district’s four Sort It recycling and waste centres, Little Stoke, has had to shut…

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