An eleventh hour deal has succeeded in the planned waste and recycling strikes being called off in Thanet.

Meetings between senior managers at Thanet District Council were held yesterday with the small number of GMB union members, who work in the waste and recycling team as HGV drivers, who had been threatening to go out on strike over their pay grades.

As a result of these discussions and a commitment by the council to independently assess the HGV drivers' post and to undertake a review of the council's job evaluation system by the end of the year, the strikes, planned for today and Monday have been called off.

Local residents are now being advised to put their waste or recycling out as normal for collection on these days.