THOUSANDS of Dorset residents have been given rubbish bins containing microchips which identify which house they belong to.

They have been installed in the new recycling and rubbish bins delivered to homes in Christchurch and parts of East Dorset in the past two months. They are part of the new Recycle for Dorset scheme being introduced in phases across the country between now and 2015.

They bins contain electronic RFID tags, which the council says will be used to identify missing or stolen bins.

They are same microchip devices caused widespread concern when they were installed in 70,000 wheelie bins delivered across Bournemouth in 2006, when they sparked fears of “pay as you throw” taxes. No such taxes were ever implemented.

Dorset Waste Partnership has said it may introduce technology on bin lorries which links with the chips, enabling collection crews to check a bin has been emptied, but a council spokesman insisted: “The tags cannot and will not be used to 'spy' on what people are putting in their bins.”

He added: “We have been upfront and open about the bins being tagged in our communications with residents, including the user guides households receive with their bins, on our website and when speaking with people at road shows.”

The Echo would like to hear from you. Have you got your new bins in the past two months? Are you aware they contain a microchip? Do you have any concerns about the chips and how they're used?