Kirklees Council believes the move to reduce the size of bins by 25 per cent would also cut the amount of household waste and save money in the long run (file image)

Dewsbury councillor Paul Moore has launched a petition to oppose the move which has been so far backed by more than 3,800 people

But Dewsbury councillor Paul Moore has launched a petition to oppose the move which has been so far backed by more than 3,800 people.

He commented that bins were ‘already overflowing’ and that ‘Kirklees residents deserve better with ever spiralling Council Tax bills.’

Adding: ‘The knock-on effect is we will see an explosion in the number of rat infestations in all our neighbourhoods which will have a massive impact on public health.’

Comments by members of the public who have signed the protest petition include Robert Bray who said his bins are ‘always full’ and the ‘decision will just lead to more fly tipping and back yard fires.’

Gemma Dunbar commented: ‘We struggle with the size of bin only getting emptied fortnightly as it is, could not manage with it being smaller.’

Susan Morrison wrote: ‘There is no money, why spend what we don’t have on something which will have little if any benefit?’

Terry Ricketts said: ‘The council is totally out of touch with the people.’, while Janet Boynton commented: ‘It’s a ridiculous waste of money.’

Even the area’s Labour MPs have issued a statement opposing the bin scheme.

Mr Moore (pictured) commented that bins were ‘already overflowing’ and that ‘Kirklees residents deserve better with ever spiralling Council Tax bills’

The scheme, published under a draft budget plan, has been condemned by the region’s MPs and a public petition to stop the move has received thousands of signatures (file image)

Paul Davies, Harpreet Uppal, Kim Leadbeater and Jade Botterill said with households ‘already struggling with overflowing bins’ it ‘may be a short-term financial fix but could lead to long-term issues of increased fly tipping’.

While Labour councillors have spoken out against the bin-size cutting idea as well.

Councillor Will Simpson from Denby Dale described the scheme as ‘a daft idea’ and added: ‘Rest assured it’s not happening.’

A Kirklees Council spokesperson told a local news website: ‘There is no immediate plan to replace grey wheelie bins anywhere in Kirklees.

‘We’ve published a consultation on budget proposals for the next financial year. But we don’t take these decisions without first asking people in Kirklees. That’s why we will look at all the feedback we receive over the next month and report back in January.

‘Managing waste costs the council millions every year, and for every tonne of waste we don’t recycle, the council has to pay more.

‘That’s residents’ money which we’d rather use to tackle fly-tipping and keeping our streets clean. Reducing the amount of waste we produce is also good for the environment and we’re always looking for ways to make Kirklees a greener place.

‘This is just one way we could potentially reach our ambitious targets on reducing waste and emissions in Kirklees.

Councillor Will Simpson from Denby Dale described the scheme as ‘a daft idea’ and added: ‘Rest assured it’s not happening’

‘We think the cost of replacing bins would be more than covered by the savings we would make. It would cost around £4.4m to replace the bins but we think we could save over £0.5m every year on top of paying for the new bins if we were able to reduce the amount of waste we don’t recycle by around 20%.

‘But there’s an extra saving too: for our environment. Most people in Kirklees want to play their part in reducing their carbon footprint and we need to think of ways we can be a greener place.

‘We haven’t taken any decisions on this proposal. We want to hear local views before we decide if we will move forward or not. Whatever is decided, we will do it in the most efficient and sustainable way possible.’