NEW charges for disposing waste in Surrey could be illegal - but it’s up to residents to take the county council to court, according to a government spokesman.

In September, Surrey County Council started charging residents for taking certain ‘non-household’ waste to its Community Recycling Centres (CRCs).

It means CRCs, such as at Witley, can now charge £4 for disposing a bag of DIY waste such as plasterboard, bricks and rubble, plus £5 for a tyre or £50 per car load of loose material.

But following representations by the Lib Dems, a senior policy adviser at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) confirmed this week Surrey’s charges may be against the law.

In a letter to Lib Dem councillor Stephen Cooksey, the DCLG’s Nick Bagshaw, said: “An interested person, such as one of the council’s residents, can apply to the High Court for a judicial review of the legality of the decision to charge residents for a type of waste if he or she is of the view that it is ‘household’ and should be disposed of for free.”

Since 2015, local authorities have not been allowed to charge residents to dispose of household waste and recycling at household waste recycling centres, he added.

Mr Bagshaw said: “In its 2011 Waste Review, the Government made a formal commitment to ensuring households have access to WRCs where they can deposit their waste and recycling free at the point of use.

“Longstanding legislation passed by Parliament requires municipal services are provided free of charge to householders for the disposal of household waste.”

Surrey County Council has long claimed DIY waste constitutes non-household waste, and thus qualifies for the new charges.

But, according to Mr Bagshaw, guidance issued to local authorities by the waste and resources action programme (WRAP) states: “DIY waste is classed as household waste if it results from work a householder would normally carry out”.

He added the DCLG expects local authorities to “offer clarity for their residents about what charges apply and how these charges are justified”.

But according to Mr Bagshaw, ultimately it is up to residents to seek legal advice after which “if the application is successful the court can declare the council has acted unlawfully and require it to stop charging”.

Responding, Mr Cooksey said it should not be up to residents to take the council to court and called on the Government to take a stronger stance.

He said: “This is a poor response from the Government, who should be enforcing the law rather than expecting residents to do it themselves.

“Rather than suggesting residents go to court, the Government should be telling the county council to drop these charges immediately. I shall shortly be writing to government ministers at DCLG asking them to do just that.

“In their letter, the Government clearly state charges should not extend to disposing of household waste from DIY but that is exactly what the Tory county council is doing.

“Liberal Democrats in Surrey have consistently opposed these unfair charges and will continue to do so until they are dropped.”