SIR

I have read a lot about Monmouthshire County Council's recycling plans recently and said little, this is despite the fact that the company I have managed for six years is likely to be put out of business as a result. My patience has limits though.

When Counc Saxon is prepared to malign hardworking MCR staff and volunteer trustees in the press I reach those limits (Beacon, 26th Aug 'Council Answers Recycling Criticism').

I don't know what he is referring to by 'poor performance' in recycling, it is a long time since he or the lead officer for waste has actually set any targets to compare against.

Counc Saxon implies that MCR did not submit an honest tender, this was a legally binding document, of course we quoted a price we could honour. Rather than choosing this three year guarantee on a full recycling service (including plastics) across the county, he restricted the service and let it run on a series of short-term agreements.

I'm happy to explain to Counc Saxon concepts such as economies of scale, long term leases, and vehicle supplier terms if he needs to understand why this has meant spending more to get less. That (in)decision drastically limited our ability to improve price or performance in the two years since. I'm sure he had his reasons, though he has not chosen to share them with us.

When a client refuses to make a decision what should a contractor do? Well, we carried on working as hard as ever with the last system the council specified, and we managed to bring it up to the highest possible standard in our pilot areas. The public had been telling MCC for years to collect plastics and wherever they got the service they really took to it.

The box system out-performed the alternative that Cllr Saxon preferred, but just as he did with the tenders, he ignored the results and gave us no feedback.

I am not asking for an explanation of MCC's decision, let alone a reversal. I am asking that Cllr Saxon thinks twice before criticising Monmouthshire's frontline staff unless he is prepared to explain his own performance in meeting public demand and looking after the public purse.

MCR has done its job, the public have done their bit, someone at MCC appears to have forgotten theirs for the last couple of years.

David Roman

(Monmouthshire Community

Recycling Ltd)