ECLIPSE June 30th!!!!!

Crackdown on household waste could lead to fines of £1000

New government rules were unveiled today, which could land you with a £1000 penalty fee if you fail to comply.

Using the wrong bin to discard your rubbish is the crime which may attract this fine under the new legislation. Households could soon end up with over five different bins for their waste. This includes a slop bucket for food waste.

Households will be required to sort through their rubbish before throwing away for anything that can be recycled, reused or converted into electricity. People who continually break these new rules are the main targets for the £1000 fine.

This new legislation proposal comes from environmental secretary Hilary Benn whose aim is to banish all food, cans, paper and glass from landfill sites in an attempt to slash greenhouse emissions.

The Tories criticised the idea with the Conservative environment spokesman Nick Herbert saying “We need to divert waste from landfill and more food and farm waste should be used to generate energy, but the way to achieve that is to encourage households by rewarding them to recycle.”

About 55 per cent of household waste ends up in landfill sites. This new scheme would save councils money on the landfill tax charged for every tonne of waste. The other issue this would solve is the problem of finding new locations when existing landfill sites are full.

While recycling rates increased dramatically over the last decade the rate has slowed in the last two years leading Benn to create this new idea. He said, “We have made good progress, but we can go further”.

Graduates losing out

With the amount of people choosing to attend university growing each year the competition for jobs in every industry is growing too. Talking to one student who graduated from Canterbury Christ Church University last year I found out just how tough the competition is getting.

Samantha Cowley, 21, has a degree in Marketing and Retail Management which she recieved in June 2009. She has since been looking for a job as a retail buyer. Asking how hard she has found it to get a job she said 'it has been extemely difficult', she went on to explain that employers are looking for more than just a degree, they want experience too. A problem for Samantha as her course did not offer any practical experience such as a 'sandwich' year, which she says are more commonly found in the business and marketing side rather than retail management.

The retail industry is very competitive especially since the recession as there have been lots of job cuts so a degree is not enough anymore, they are looking for other attributes. And in most job descriptions it is stated that you need at least a 2:1 to get hired at an entry level position. I asked Samantha what she is doing to overcome this problem and she said she is still applying to graduate schemes as well as trying to work her way up through a compay gaining experience that way. She also said that while doing her degree she worked wth two major fashion retailers. Samantha is also doing an excel course as many companies are looking for people who have these skills and she says she is 'making sure to put myself ahead of the competition'.

The last question I asked was whether Samantha thought the issue would continue to grow, to which she said 'yes'. She gave a number of reasons for this, the biggest being the amount of people recieving degrees every year and the fact that it means it is not just this years graduates looking for jobs but last years too.

Students take action

For months now there have been claims that university fees are set to rise to almost double the amount after the General Elections. Now, with the election drawing near the biggest issue seems to be whether this rise in fees will prevent people from going to university.

The result of this has led to numerous protests by students all over the country. Now Canterbury Student Unions are getting involved. On 11 November 2009 38 students from Canterbury travelled to London to join the protest on tuition fees, these students were led by Canterbury Christ Church University’s Student Union Vice-President Steve Godwin.

It has recently come to light that there is to be another demonstration of this nature which is to take place in Canterbury. This again is being led by Steve Godwin who, with regards to this matter has said ‘this is the biggest Student Union campaign in the last 10 years’. The demonstration which is set to happen 27 February 2010 will consist of a march through Canterbury high street towards the new Christ Church library, Augustine House. They also plan to question the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats on the possibility that fees will rise.

What they want is for local members of Parliament to vote against this. However, the MP’s have very carefully kept quiet until now; the students are no longer giving them the choice. The force of the multiple demonstrations has made it clear that the students have an ever growing voice in Britain and they plan to vote for the candidates who prove sympathetic to their cause.

Dear Student, Important information regarding tuition fees in Canterbury. Please spread the word. 1) Our tuition fees are under review - the next Government will announce if they will rise or not in the next six months. 2) We don't want others to pay more to come to University. We currently pay up to £3,225. This could rise to £5,000 or £6,000 per year! 3) We are demonstrating here in Canterbury the last week of February. Check www.canterburyunited.co.uk for more info. On Saturday 27th there will be a mass of people meeting at Westgate Hall (near Westgate towers) at 12.00. We will be marching down Canterbury high street, into the Dane John Park, and then into Augustine House. We will question the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats on the potential rise in fees! Please be there, join the Facebook groups and keep this movement strong. In Unity, Steven Godwin - Vice President Welfare and Education Silvia Rasca - Education Officer

The demonstration in Canterbury is being advertised everywhere, with emails being sent to every student at Christ Church University, Kent University and Canterbury College. The unions want to get everyone involved; Steve Godwin says ‘it affects all of us, why should we have to pay almost double the amount we are paying now to be educated?’ He goes on to say that it is unfair and the product will be a lesser educated nation as people will no longer be able to afford to go to university.

So the question remains, will university fees rise to £6000 per year, unfortunately we will not receive an answer until after the election. However, one thing is for sure, the students are not willing to just bow down and admit defeat.