Christmas, The Time Of Goodwill And Cheer,

well I thought it was,

but not if you have been told by your local council in Northampton there will be zero tolerance of wheelie bins overflowing with extra rubbish after Christmas, with offenders facing a £100 fine, the delay in collecting rubbish means some families will have wrapping paper and packaging clogging up their homes for a fortnight after Christmas, other councils have refused to accept wrapping paper in their recycling bins and are insisting that residents try to pack it all into contain-for perishable rubbish, the rules mean families will be hard pressed to get rid of their recycling waste without making a trip to the local tip, some councils have decided to stop recycling rounds entirely until well into January, in Walsall, people who would get a collection on Christmas Eve will not have their recycling taken until January 7, four weeks after the previous collection on December 10, in Oxford, those who would normally have had their recycling picked up on Christmas Day must wait another fortnight, a spokesman for Northampton council said: 'When putting out rubbish, residents with wheelie bins must ensure it is all contained in the bin with the lid closed, waste left to the side will not be collected and will be classified as fly-tipping.', Hertsmere, in Hertfordshire, has told residents: 'Try to reuse wrapping paper again or use brown paper and decorate with pretty ribbon instead.'

and there was me thinking that you paid council workers to help you, but you are paying them to fine you for your Christmas wrappings! Merry Christmas!