A band of politicians donned their rubber gloves to clean up a beach after the Bank Holiday.

They joined together at St Margaret's Bay near Dover to mark National Volunteer Week and the the Great British Spring Clean campaign.

The team consisted of Deal and Dover MP Natalie Elphicke, the leader of Dover District council Trevor Bartlett and the chairman of St Margaret's Parish Council Cllr Rebecca Simcox.

They were joined by other councillors Cllr Martin Bates, Cllr Oliver Richardson and volunteers who collectively scoured the shoreline of rubbish left by visitors.

Mrs Elphicke, who lives in the bay, praised the efforts of litter volunteers.

Pointing out the damage that litter can do to the environment, Mrs Elphicke called for visitors to take their rubbish home with them and dispose of it responsibly.

She said: “Thank you to all the litter volunteers who do so much to keep our beaches clean and keep our area clean and tidy.

"Keeping Britain Tidy is something all of us can help with. So if you have rubbish please take it home with you, or use the bins provided. Together we can keep Dover & Deal beautiful for all to enjoy so let’s all do our bit to Keep Britain, and Dover and Deal, tidy.”

Conversely it comes as Dover District Council's waste contractor Veolia continued to blunder its way through streamlining changes that have resulted in eight weeks of refuse chaos at the roadside.

Middle Street in Deal is the latest to suffer missed bin collections and problems with Veolia's computerised system, which has been telling people the round has been completed when it has not.

Mrs Elphicke said: "A number of residents have raised concerns about doorstep collection changes by Veolia that have seen rubbish uncollected on hot days.

"The changes have let residents down, and let down Dover District Council who did a terrific job in keeping doorstep collections going during the pandemic.

"I understand the council have put in place a new system to report missed collections and to raise complaints.

"I would encourage residents to go online and log all issues, so that the Council have all the information they need to make sure Veolia are quickly providing a better level of service for our area.”

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