1. Will the Minister make a statement on the Welsh Government’s policy to prevent littering in Wales? OAQ(5)0025(ERA)

Thank you. Action to prevent littering is focused on both enforcement programmes and collaboration across key partner organisations working to change public attitudes and behaviour through community involvement and education. Encouraging people to take pride in their local environment and to take action themselves will lead to stronger and longer lasting improvements.

Thank you very much. Next month, my local authority on Anglesey is moving to three-weekly rubbish collections, having decided against four-weekly collections for now. In August, all but three local authorities met their targets for recycling, which is very good—I mean, that’s a good achievement—including all of the north Wales authorities. In Anglesey’s case, we also met that target. We did that whilst collecting every fortnight. Can you people explain to the people of Anglesey why it is that we are now going to be moving on to three-weekly collections, which feels to me a bit like punishing people who have actually achieved what they set out to achieve?

It’s not for me to explain to the people of Anglesey why they’re going to three-weekly rubbish collections; that’s for Anglesey council to explain. However, you’ll be aware that this is recycling week, and if people are recycling properly, bearing in mind we have weekly recycling collections—I think we’ve got a very good story to tell on recycling in Wales; we’re the fourth best country in Europe—then maybe there wouldn’t be so much rubbish in the black bins. That’s what we’re concentrating on now, because 50 per cent of the rubbish that goes into black bins, we think, could also be recycled.

Minister, having spent many happy hours walking 10 miles a day through the streets of Llanelli during the election campaign, I witnessed at first hand the litter problem we have in the town. I’m now discussing with the local authority setting up on a cross-party basis a litter taskforce for the town. One of the issues that comes back time and again on Facebook from residents is the unintended consequence of the guidelines about the number of black bags that can be put out and the result this has on increased fly-tipping in back lanes. Could the Minister give some thought, when applying recycling targets, to what the unintended consequences might be and how they may be mitigated?

We certainly don’t want to see an increase in fly-tipping, and I commend you for organising a litter taskforce. As I say, I think we’ve got a really good news story to tell on recycling. It’s up to local authorities how they organise their collection of rubbish and recycling and it’s also up to local authorities how they enforce the laws in relation to litter, because it is a crime to litter. I think, again, we need to make sure that local authorities are doing that part of their work also.

My question actually follows on from both questions that have been asked previously. Moves to trial four-weekly collections in Conwy County Borough Council is causing huge uproar, with many families now actually worried about how they’re going to be able to cope. Concerns are obviously about overflowing bins and increased fly-tipping. Fly-tipping in Wales costs the environment £70 million annually. What is your reaction to the switch proposals for four-weekly bin collections—the first in the UK? How are you working with local authorities to improve on what is only a 0.2 per cent success rate on enforcing and prosecuting those guilty of fly-tipping?

I refer the Member to my two previous answers. Whether Conwy council have four-weekly, three-weekly, two-weekly collections is a matter for Conwy council. I don’t tell them what to do. Welsh Government doesn’t tell them what to do. In relation to local authorities and the 0.2 per cent, as I say, littering is a crime and it’s up to local authorities to make sure that they use all their powers of enforcement.

Over the summer, Newgale beach in Pembrokeshire was one of the first in Wales to participate in a campaign to tidy up our beaches. It asked people to join with this campaign to collect litter for just two minutes. I did this over the weekend in Whitesands. I would like to ask whether you’d be willing to applaud this campaign and whether you would also remind people that we wouldn’t need to do this if people took their rubbish home in the first place

Absolutely. I think that’s a really important point in relation to the issue we have with it. I’m really delighted to hear about the very collaborative approach that you had in your scheme in Pembrokeshire. I think it’s an easy way of improving the quality of our environment, just one piece at a time. Two minutes isn’t a great deal of time to ask people to volunteer. So, while that is an individual effort, collectively that brings about a big difference to one of our most precious assets.