The Kent County Council Labour group has responded to Island Tory spokesman Gordon Henderson’s comment about pensioners helping to keep Sheppey tidy.

Last week we reported how a trip out into the community with Swale Borough Council prompted Mr Henderson to make the suggestion.

But it has enraged the Labour group.

Shadow leader of KCC, Councillor Mike Eddy said: “Henderson’s comments are outrageous.

“Conservative-controlled KCC put up domiciliary care charges last year, now Sittingbourne & Sheppey Conservatives are going around saying the elderly should sweep streets for pin money.

“It just shows that the Conservatives have no respect for the older generation at all.”

Labour county councillor for Sheerness Angela Harrison added: “If Conservative-controlled Swale Borough Council did its job properly, there wouldn’t be any rubbish on Sheppey’s streets and alleys in the first place.

“Suggesting that the elderly should be bunged a few extra quid for doing the work of the local council is typical of a Tory – everything done on the cheap, with no respect for people’s dignity.”

However, Mr Henderson has insisted that his comments were not disrespectful and merely to offer those who want it an opportunity.

He responded: “I am astonished that Mike Eddy finds outrageous my suggestion that pensioners should be able to earn some extra money by cleaning up their local environment. It’s not as if I said the work should be compulsory, any involvement would be entirely voluntary.

“Mr Eddy needs to understand that just because people reach the age of 60 or 65 doesn’t mean that they are one step from the grave.

“Recruiting them into a local environmental task force would help them and at the same time help clean up our area.

“I fail to see why allowing pensioners the chance to earn some extra money by keeping their local area clean, shows a lack of respect.

“I also fail to see how sweeping a street or cleaning an alley is in some way undignified. I think such comments are very insulting to the full time cleaning staff who do this work day in day out.

“I have to say that this somewhat hysterical reaction from the Labour Group at Kent County Council is pretty hypocritical.

“Let’s not forget that these are the same people who support a government that has decimated the private pension of millions of people and has said that it wants people to keep working until they are 70 to solve a pensions crisis created by Gordon Brown.”