IT was, sadly, just about the most predictable Derby New Year headline to emerge – "Festering rubbish in Normanton's streets again".
Here's what we said in this column last month, after the city council announced there would be no refuse collections over the Christmas and New Year period:
"Some householders will dump rubbish in the street – or it will be spilling out of bins.
"That is already a sizeable problem in Derby – it could become considerably worse over the holiday fortnight."
And, if we had been running a gambling book on where the problem would be most visible, the odds on Normanton would have been prohibitively low.
And so it has proved, to the satisfaction of nobody – apart, perhaps, from the selfish folk who decided to dump their rubbish in their or, more probably, a neighbouring street.
The council argued it could save £100,000 by not having collections over this period.
It refused to accept the blindingly-obvious argument, put forward by plenty of people, that households generate more rubbish – packaging and food leftovers in particular – at this time of year than at any other time.
The council's defence to the renewed criticism coming its way about the sickening state of Normanton's streets is that other suburbs managed to avoid emulating those scenes despite the lack of bin collections.
Well done to those residents.
They should not have had to manage without a binman visit – other authorities, such as Erewash, maintained a good service – but they showed it was possible if they were prepared to put up with a full bin bag or two crammed away somewhere.
As for the Normanton offenders, it seems they need little or no excuse to drag down the area's appearance and reputation which others are so desperate to repair.
Start the prosecutions – it is the only answer.
