Cost to collect waste to rise

Midlothian Council is to increase charges for collecting waste from businesses.

At a full council meeting on Tuesday, councillors agreed to increase charges to trade customers by eight per cent.

The charges are to recover increased costs of collecting and disposing of commercial waste, including tipping fees and vehicle running costs. Landfill Tax is set to increase by £8 per year until it reaches £80 a tonne in 2014/2015. The new charges will begin on April 1.