Mike Martin MP has hit out at the Reform UK leadership of Kent County Council (KCC) following revelations that the authority is losing out on an estimated £500,000 annually by giving away high-value aluminium recycling revenues to a private waste firm.
Speaking in a House of Commons debate on local authority aluminium recycling, the MP for Tunbridge Wells raised concerns over KCC’s failure to renegotiate its contract with waste management operator Veolia.
Freedom of Information data shows that while district and borough councils in Kent collect aluminium cans from residents and hand them to KCC, Veolia sells the metal to the highest bidder and retains 100 per cent of the revenue.
The processed aluminium is then exported as far as Thailand and the USA, leaving local taxpayers with no return on the valuable commodity.
Using DEFRA models, it is estimated that Kent collects approximately 500 tonnes of aluminium cans per year, representing more than £500,000 in lost annual income that could be reinvested in local services.
By contrast, other local authorities retain significant recycling revenues. Cambridgeshire County Council secures £1.6 million annually, while West Sussex County Council retains £1 million per year.
Despite Reform UK taking control of the council 18 months ago on a platform to cut waste and renegotiate wasteful contracts, promoted as a flagship local government “DOGE” initiative, no action has been taken to rectify the agreement.
The Minister responding to the debate, Emma Hardy MP, agreed with Mike Martin MP about the council’s failure to recognise the value of local assets, noting that central government cannot fix local incompetence.
Legal precedents demonstrate that councils can challenge unfavourable terms. Buckinghamshire Council successfully took its waste provider to the High Court in 2024 to recover underpaid revenues, while South Ribble Borough Council terminated its contract following a change in political leadership, saving £178,000 in its first year.
Mike Martin MP, Member of Parliament for Tunbridge Wells, said:
“As a Kent MP, I am consistently amazed at how rubbish the Reform leadership of Kent County Council is. When Reform came in, Kent was supposed to be the flagship for their ‘DOGE’ efficiency campaign, yet they are sitting by while over half a million pounds of taxpayers’ money is handed straight to a private company.
“Aluminium is the most valuable material in our domestic recycling system. Residents in Tunbridge Wells do the right thing by recycling, only for the county council to give that value away for nothing while neighbouring authorities bring in millions.
“Kent’s leadership promised to renegotiate deals that fail residents, but they have done absolutely nothing. I agree with the Minister that this is incompetence, plain and simple.”
