Rubbish tax: A good idea?

Chancellor Gordon Brown is reportedly set to more than double the tax on rubbish in order to force councils to encourage more people to recycle their rubbish.

He is also expected to propose that councils should be given the option of introducing extra charges for doorstep rubbish collection.

This would include a £1 surcharge for people who produce more than two bin bags every week.

Do you think this will encourage recycling? Is it a good idea?

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This Talking Point discussion has now finished. Thank you for your comments.

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Most of my rubbish (by weight) is junk mail. There's no way I'm paying for that to be disposed of. Mr Brown - tackle the sources of the problem, rather than pass the buck to the general public.
Jonathan Kelk, UK

What on earth do I pay my council tax for anyway?

Laura, UK

Two measly bags of rubbish a week? Just cleaning out my pets uses that allowance up! And is there to be any judgement made on the size of the bag? Will a full wheelie bin bag count as two bags, or the same as a half-filled swing bin liner? And what on earth do I pay my council tax for anyway? This is just another excuse for the government to screw the taxpayer whilst pretending to care about the environment, as with fuel tax. I do agree with the charge of 10p for using plastic carrier bags, however.
Laura, UK

It's not a question of whether or not it's a good idea, it's more a question of why wasn't this done years ago. We cannot continue producing waste and having no concern for its destination.
Melanie Torrance, Scotland

Whilst I agree that something needs to be done about the mountain of rubbish the UK creates I also believe that the government should seriously consider tackling the industries that produce the amount of packaging found on every product embelishing supermarket shelves. The 10p per plastic bag is a good suggestion. But I don't see why the council tax needs to be further increased. Is it not high enough as it is? Every year we are told that the increase is for this or that, specially for additional police force and every year this does not happen. If someone has any answer to that please let us know.
Maria , UK

When we were on holiday in Galway city this summer they were running a pilot recycling project. Householders had 3 separate wheelie bins for the various categories of waste. They were recycling tins, glass, plastics, cardboard, compostable waste etc. There was a doorstep collection schedule. It all seemed to work pretty well. In addition we noticed the return of the shopping bag as a response to the 10 cents plastic bag tax. It certainly seemed to reduce street litter. We could introduce this for starters as it is a proven success in Ireland
Eileen, UK

Everybody needs re-educating on the issues of waste. We are a throw away society!

Steve T, England

Our local council collects recyclable waste every fortnight, and I have to say that this means our household does think about the waste we produce. But, there should also be more onus on manufacturers to produce more recyclable packaging, and, everybody needs re-educating on the issues of waste. We are a throw away society! I do not agree with the ?1 surcharge on extra bin bags. We already pay hefty council taxes, and this is not a solution to the waste problem. All that will happen is people will spend even more time at local tips to dispose of their rubbish.
Steve T, England

It is a marvellous idea. I analysed it both from a subjective and an objective point of view and concluded that this was the best way to solve problems.
Darren Demicoli, Malta

A tax won't work - we have the highest tax on fuel in world, yet we now drive more than ever!

Alex Thompson, UK

I have lived in Canada and Australia which both have excellent recycling policies. From my experience, it's about educating your children that recycling your trash, and not putting it in the bin is the way forward. A tax won't work - we have the highest tax on fuel in world, yet we now drive more than ever!
Alex Thompson, UK

Fly tipping is bad enough in my area without encouraging people to do it even more. Yet another one of Tony's sly taxes aimed at increasing revenue rather than solving the initial problem. Hurry up the next election!
George, England

Not enough of us can be bothered to recycle so we should be hit in the pocket

Gerry, UK

The council's are too easy a target, he needs to do something to change people in the UK's attitude. Not enough of us can be bothered to recycle so we should be hit in the pocket, not the councils. I agree with the Irish 10p tax per plastic bag, this does encourage the reuse of the bag. Similarly we should be charged a deposit on all glass and plastic containers and companies that use excessive packaging should be fined.
Gerry, UK

Yes, absolutely we should be more aware of the real cost of managing the waste we produce and be prepared to change our ways or pay. But, we also need the opportunity to dispose of waste properly... I have a five year old collection of used batteries and old carrier bags and nowhere to recycle them!!
Mark Dobie, Southampton, UK

Seems a remedy for more rubbish to be dumped and left on the street, hasn't he learnt anything from the fridge mountain fiasco.
Pete, UK

An increase in these charges will lead to an increase in illegal flytipping. I wonder if Mr Brown pays extra for his bin bags?
Rich, UK

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This Talking Point discussion has now finished. Thank you for your comments.