THE region’s biggest council says it is keen to learn more about Government plans to encourage local authorities to return to weekly bin collections.

Durham County Council agreed to introduce a potentially controversial “twin bin”

system from April next year in which refuse and recycling bins across the county are collected on alternate weeks.

But in a statement last night the authority did not rule out a change of direction, depending on the outcome of a waste policy review being conducted by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Reports this week suggested the Government could pay councils to collect rubbish weekly. Fortnightly collections have been introduced by some authorities in an attempt to encourage householders to recycle more.

But Local Government Minister Eric Pickles is keen to reverse the trend. He believes some councils are not providing the standard of service expected by the public. There have been instances in towns of uncollected rubbish piling up, attracting rats.

Oliver Sherratt, head of direct services at Durham County Council, said: “We are keen to learn more about the reported proposals regarding refuse collection payments planned by the Government.

“Unfortunately, at the moment, it is impossible to judge what influence they may have in County Durham as we have not received any communications on the matter. When we have the facts, we will give them proper consideration.”

The authority could save £1.4m next year by moving to fortnightly collections, and last month wrote to refuse staff to summarise the planned changes, which will see a reduction of 31 posts and a move to a four-day week.

In Hartlepool, which already operates the twin bin system, a council spokesman said: “In Hartlepool it has been very successful.

“However, once the Government’s waste policy review is completed and published we will carefully examine its recommendations.”

A spokeswoman for Hambleton and Richmondshire district councils, which share waste collection services and also operate twin bins, said reverting back to weekly was “not on our radar at the moment”.

She said: “To revert back to weekly would be very expensive. Fortnightly collections are an incentive for people to recycle and we have found people have embraced them here.”

A Government spokesman said: “The review will be published shortly.”