AS the successful candidate for Unsworth in the recent elections, I must reply to "Ever Bin Had?" (Your Letters, May 28).

I will attempt to mollify him/her and the many people of Unsworth who are unhappy with the present system of refuse collection, which results in loss of service on four Bank Holiday Mondays per year.

Because of persistent complaints in other parts of the borough, a decision was made to provide the service on a three-year rotational basis; thus Unsworth's Monday collection commenced in October, 1996. To try to overcome the anticipated problems, a collection on the Saturdays preceding a Bank Holiday Monday - except for Christmas, New Year and Easter weekends - was arranged.

Unfortunately, because of extra street parking on Saturdays, many bins had to be left because the huge refuse vehicle could not gain access to premises. Unsworth's problems will cease in October this year and all residents will be notified well in advance. In an attempt to overcome the problem, rather than pass it to another area, the local authority is considering other possible arrangements, which will eliminate all Monday collections.

COUNCILLOR SYLVIA MASON

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