Clean up your language, council leader told after swearing in fly-tipping ad

Greenwich Council’s leader has been told to mind his language after releasing a sweary video to promote an anti-flytipping initiative.

Anthony Okereke said that fly-tipping was “lazy and criminal, and we’re not putting up with this shit any more” in a press release and social media videos issued on Monday, with the offending word either bleeped or asterisked out.

The Labour council – which has announced plans to spend £5 million over four-and-a-half years on clearing up fly-tipping and pursuing those responsible – is even using “we’re not putting up with this s*** any more” as a slogan on its Facebook page.

Lakshan Saldin, of the Independent and Green group, wrote to Okereke and Debbie Warren, the council’s chief executive, on Monday night to call for the social videos to be removed.

The videos show Okereke talking with a resident and council staff, declaring “we’re not putting up with that shit any more” before putting items in the back of a car – presumably to take it to the council’s recycling centre in Thamesmead, although this is not made explicit.

“See, this is how you get rid of your rubbish. What you don’t do is dump it on the streets,” he said.

Saldin, who represents Charlton Hornfair, said Okereke should clean up his language as well as the streets.

“This use of profanity might have appeared clever to some media advisor but it’s simply not appropriate for a leader of a London borough council,” he said. “Imagine you’re a schoolteacher now and you tell a student not to use language like that, the student can now simply say if it’s good enough for the leader of Greenwich Council, then it’s good enough for them. 

“We all know that Labour is facing difficult council elections in May next year, but this just looks desperate.”

The number of enforcement teams will be doubled, new CCTV will be installed, offenders will be named and shamed, while rewards will be offered for residents who help the council catch offenders. 

There is also a pledge that it will be easier for residents to get bulky rubbish collected – which costs £13.31 per item. Some residents on social media suggested that the council follows neighbouring Lewisham and cuts the cost to £5 per item. 

Asked to explain what the council would do to make it easier for bulky waste to be removed, Okereke said: “Alongside educating residents on what can be removed, we’ll be hiring additional staff and reviewing our bulky waste service, from charging levels and materials taken. Our aim is to make collections more accessible for residents while keeping them sustainable and affordable for the borough.”

The campaign is part of a broader council outlay before the election next May, which is likely to be the most difficult for Labour for more than half a century. It is being paid for by one-off funds such as cash from developers, government grants, land sales and other windfalls that are not part of the council’s regular income. 

Labour sources have suggested that fly-tipping was blamed for recent by-election losses, including an incident where a burnt-out car was said to have been left on the Coldharbour Estate in Mottingham during a poll there in June last year, which was easily won by the Conservatives before that party’s hammering in the general election. 

Okereke told The Greenwich Wire: “The campaign video has been seen over 16,000 times within the first 24 hours, and the general sentiment seems to be appreciated and has been taken in the light-hearted way it was intended. We have not received any complaints from residents, and the video has been well engaged with, with the public sharing our frustration at fly-tipping criminals.

“The most offensive thing for most people is rubbish dumped on their street. Anything we can do to draw attention and build a sense of unity against the small number of people who dump illegally is a positive. We all share the same goal – fly-tipping needs to stop and those doing it need to be held accountable and made an example of.”

Updated at 4.55pm with additional quote from Anthony Okereke.

📱Fly-tipping can be reported using FixMyStreet.

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