"I know it's hard for the council, but I think this is outrageous"

Residents in Stockport say they would refuse to pay a £59 charge for green bin garden waste collections.

The council is drawing up plans to introduce the yearly fee as part of cost-cutting measures to balance the books.

If approved, residents would have to opt in to pay £59 a year for a weekly collection for garden waste, discounted to £39 for those in receipt of council tax support.

Weekly food-only collections in green bins would remain free under the plans, while blue bin collections could change to once every four weeks rather than fortnightly as they are now.

Residents can also buy a compost bin at a ‘discounted rate’ to remove their garden waste themselves to avoid the collection charge.

The council hopes the plans will help it save £2m as it faces a £25m deficit which needs to be filled for the 2025/26 financial year.

A report shared with the council’s cabinet leadership team in September revealed that budget problems are set to get worse in future, with savings of more than £60m needed in 2027/28.

Stockport council deputy leader Mark Roberts said the town hall is facing “unprecedented financial challenges” and that it “must make tough decisions” to balance the books.

But residents are not happy with the potential charge for bin collections - and fear it could lead to garden waste ending up on the streets and pile financial pressure on struggling families.

Clare Lodge, 51, said: "I know it's hard for the council, but I think this is outrageous. It would lead to more fly tipping and people dumping things on the street.

“I wouldn't pay the charge, I'd just put things in my black bin. Paper and cardboard in blue bins I would take to the tip.

“I think people will struggle with the blue bin changes, at Christmas we