Glasgow garden waste permits for brown bins to cost £50 per year

Glasgow residents are set to be charged £50 to have their garden waste collected when new brown bin permits are rolled out.

It has previously been free for homes with brown bins to have grass cuttings, leaves, branches and other garden material lifted.

Residents who buy a permit will get a sticker to show their bin can be used for garden waste when the scheme goes live this spring.

People who don’t pay the £50 per year charge will still be able to use the brown bins for food waste. They will also be able to take garden waste to recycling centres without facing a fee.

Councillors decided to bring in the permits, which council papers stated would raise £2m, as they were faced with a £49m gap when setting the budget for 2023/24.

During the budget meeting, city treasurer Ricky Bell, SNP, said, in his view, increasing charges is “preferable to slashing vital services many Glaswegians rely on”.

Brown bins are collected every fortnight throughout the year.

A council spokesperson said: “Moving to charge for the collection of garden waste was a decision taken by councillors while setting the council budget for 2023 to 2024.

“There is no legal obligation for local authorities to collect garden waste from householders and charging for the collection of garden waste is widely adopted by councils across Scotland.

“The cost of a garden waste permit in Glasgow will be £50 per year with the scheme due to go live this spring. Residents who buy a permit will be given a sticker for their bin that indicates it can be used for garden waste.

“If there is no sticker on the bin then no garden waste will be collected, although brown bins can still be used free of charge for food waste only.

“Garden waste can still be taken to our household waste recycling centres without charge.”