NEWPORT Labour councillors did not waste any words when they tackled two political opponents over pre-election campaigning.

At a previous meeting, accusations over leaflets put around the Stow Hill ward by Conservatives Peter Davies and William J Routley were brushed aside.

But Labour councillors produced copies of the election material from the pair which called for the re-introduction of weekly household waste collections as quickly as possible throughout the city.

Cllr Ray Truman, the previous cabinet member for the environment, said they should now be honest with the electorate.

Newport's Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition leaders have continued the previous administration's trial of weekly food waste collections for 1,300 homes in the city. In the next few weeks, they will extend the scheme to another 3,000 households.

His successor, Cllr David Fouweather, said the party had not said they would be re-introducing weekly household waste collections.

However, it was hoped that the food waste collection would be available throughout the city by 2010.

Cllr Routley confirmed he supported this policy but his further comments revealed there was a division in the Tory ranks over the issue.

He asked Cllr Fouweather to re-examine the "one size fits all" policy.

He said terraced homes in Baneswell and other areas of the city had up to five bins or boxes on the streets outside their homes and asked the cabinet member if weekly refuse collections could be re-introduced for such properties.

But Cllr Fouweather was clear that was not going to happen with the council having to meet strict targets on recycling and reducing the amount of rubbish sent to landfill.

"Fortnightly (household waste) collections are here to stay whether in terraced houses or not."