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Saturday, October 29, 2016
Council demands to know if you are straight, gay, lesbian or transgender - before it does your recycling
Council demands to know if you are straight, gay, lesbian or transgender - before it does your recycling
Updated
ByJim Hardy, Stephen Jones
Suffolk County Council is asking householders about age,
race, religion and what sexual orientation they are - along with
disabilities, including whether they are HIV+
The council wants to know your sexual orientation - to do your recycling
A council want to know if people are straight, gay , lesbian or transgender - before it does their recycling.
Public-spirited residents who recycle tin cans, empty bottles and old newspapers to help the planet have reacted with outrage.
In
a survey about opening hours and the way the recycling centres are laid
out, Suffolk County Council (SCC) has also asked householders to detail
their age, race, religion and what sexual orientation they are.
There are also being asked questions about disabilities - including whether they have HIV.
Although
the survey said declaring yourself to be straight, gay or transgender
is an 'optional' question, many people have taken to social media to
complain about it being asked at all.
WESSEX NEWS AGENCY
Residents have reacted with outrage after being quizzed by the council
Ian C asked the council: "What does it matter how many transgender individuals recycle their rubbish?"
Alison
M posted: "I can understand why Suffolk County Council need to know
whether disabled people use their sites, but as for sexual orientation,
it is no one's business."
The recycling survey is not the first
time Suffolk County Council has poked its nose into people's personal
habits and background.
Similar questions were included in a
survey about the Orwell River Crossing in Ipswich and about the plans
for a new bus station in Sudbury.
WESSEX NEWS AGENCY
Should authorities need to know such detail to process your old tin cans?
A council spokesman denies it is prying, and said the answers were
needed "to find out about the diversity of those who contributed".
He
said it was "entirely optional whether people filled in that part of
the survey and their answers to the rest of the questions would be
considered anyway".
He added: "It is important to know what people with
disabilities or illnesses think about our services and it is important
that we try to encourage diversity.
"We need to know that not everyone is the same."
The
council told social media critics: "SCC understands that you may feel
these questions are intrusive and highly personal. The information you
submit is voluntary but it does make a difference."
People still don't seem convinced - among other social media
comments today, 'Suffolk Exlie' posted: "The only question out of that
list that is of any relevance is disability - can someone whose
disability restricts their mobility use the facilities at the site?"
Time
Traveller added: "I object to being asked my ethnicity and sexual
preferences on a survey where this shouldn't be an issue, so every time I
see one I fill it in with incorrect details (which makes it even more
meaningless)."
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