GEORGE Osborne’s “draconian cuts” have been blamed by Bournemouth’s council leader for a U-turn on its free garden waste collection policy.

Cllr John Beesley insisted in May 2013 that charges for picking up residents’ garden waste would not be introduced while he was in charge.

Yesterday, however, they were.

An annual membership fee of £50 per household for two bins or a £35 charge for one bin will be required from residents starting in February. The collection period for the service, used by almost 32,000 households across the town, will be increased to span 10 months.

The council spent £650,000 on the service in 2015/16 and expects that to increase to £680,000 in 2016/17.

Cllr Beesley said he has been left “very disappointed to be put in this position by central government”, claiming the chancellor’s cuts are set to become “more draconian” and are in addition to the 50 per cent of its government grant already wiped out.

“So we therefore place accountability firmly at the door of central government, that has continued to cut both local government funding to a far greater extent than any other part of spending by government and far more than originally promised,” he said.

“At the same time it is placing more and more responsibilities and costs on local authority. I think we are going to see up and down the country the unintended consequences of that and the demand led services, particularly in adult social care which requires more and more local authority funding without any additional help.”

He said the council’s strategy had “been based on what the government told us” but when the chancellor delivered his July budget "all that changed”.

“Of our net budget, that spent on adult social care and children’s social care now amounts to about 75 per cent of everything we spend,” Cllr Beesley said. “That leaves us with just 25 per cent for all the other services the council provides and that is before the further cuts that are now envisaged by central government.

“The chancellor has made it clear that those cuts are going to be even more draconian than they already have been.”

Cllr Michael Filer, cabinet member for cleansing and waste, said paying for garden waste collection was “not unreasonable”, citing that Poole council charge £37.35 for a single bin and Dorset County Council charge £45, compared to Bournemouth’s charge of £35.

Residents of flats can also take part in the service using shared bins, following a site visit and agreement from the managing agent or committee.

Residents who wish to join the 2016 scheme will be able to apply by visiting bournemouth.gov.uk/gardenwaste from today.