A Stevenage councillor is backing calls for waste collection workers to be prioritised for Covid vaccination.

Collecting bins from driveways, handling waste materials and working in small refuse teams can potentially put workers at greater risk of picking up the virus.

Speaking at a meeting of the Hertfordshire Waste Partnership this week, Stevenage councillor John Gardner called for them to have some priority.

Earlier in the meeting members had referred to a council – elsewhere in the country – where two refuse workers had died from the virus, with others off sick or self-isolating.

After referring to that situation, councillor Gardner – who is a member of Stevenage Borough Council – said: "In common with a number of authorities up and down the country, we are very keen for waste staff – who are out every day on our streets – to get priority, in terms of vaccinations, at some stage.

"Somebody has to make a difficult decision between different groups of key workers.

"But I think from a district council point of view if there are any real key workers – face to face with the public most days of the week, going up and down their garden paths etc – then it must be the people collecting the recycling and the residual waste.

"So we certainly back any lobbying campaign along those grounds – just as we do with testing."

At the meeting Gardner also highlighted the offer made by Stevenage Borough Council to support the collection of lateral flow tests from schools, which are considered to be 'offensive' waste.

And with reference to the lateral flow tests for essential key workers – designed to reveal those who have the virus, without any symptoms – he said they were keen to see adequate capacity to test waste staff twice a week.

The Hertfordshire Waste Partnership brings together officials and councillors from the couty council and the 10 district and borough councils who have responsibility for waste collection and disposal.