Lancaster City Council is encouraging local residents and community groups to get together and clean up the district to celebrate the Queen’s 90th birthday.
Presumably this national initiative is the brainchild of some Tory wag who wants us to clean our streets for free because councils can’t afford to pay their staff to do the extra work thanks to government funding cuts.
Update 29th February: The project is being fronted by Justice Secretary Michael Gove, pictured above. His involvement has prompted social media shenanigans, like the revised photograph below…
As we reported yesterday, the County Council has just announced it will no longer be weed spraying from April as it seeks to save money, which is hardly going to keep some places very tiday.
However, perhaps we shouldn’t be too grumpy – after all, volunteer litter picks are already regular occurrence across our District thanks to a lack of funds for such work – they just don’t get the kind of high profile they should when Her Maj isn’t involved.
The City Council is supporting the official ‘Clean for the Queen’ weekend, which takes place on March 4, 5 and 6.
If you want to take part, Lancaster City Council is keen to help get you started.
As well as offering the free loan of all the equipment and taking away the litter collected at the end of the day, you will also be given the information you need to carry out a safe and successful litter pick.
Coun David Smith, Cabinet member with responsibility for the environment, said: “We are delighted to be supporting Clean for The Queen and we would encourage as many groups, individuals and organisations to take part.
“We can all do our bit to improve the appearance of our neighbourhoods and keep them litter free.
“We would like to hear from any communities, schools, companies and any individuals who would like to take part.”
• For more information and to find out how to take part please email hryan@lancaster.gov.uk or telephone 01524 582822.
• Details of the ‘Clean for the Queen’ campaign are available at the website www.cleanforthequeen.co.uk
What an awful idea