The council subsidies many things, through providing services for free or undercharging . Some goods may be regarded as public good so benefit more than just the private user many may just benefit the private user to balance what part of the subsidy for wider society and what to the individual may be different shades of grey.
Although most people would argue that schools are a public good and should be subsidies there has been some shift away from free at point of use education by the two main Westminster parties. If collage is the new 6th forth which is chargeable etc etc 6th form or indeed collage never used to be chargable.
Schools could have means tested extra charges and still provide the public good aspect but can’t see that being popular or current. There is many other subsidies that the council allocate that could be reduced for example the free tram for over 60s. Many could afford to pay getting off in west end some on 6 figures salaries. Should the typically poorer tax payer subsides them. Council houses are rented below the market rate, and are a subsidy many people living in councils house on a higher income that many of those not in council houses. Its private rented house that young and poor often end up in often ex councils houses rented at a higher rate.
It’s not poor and ruff sleepers would effect, a ruff sleeper or a poorer person would find it harder to get a council house than many people. In Edinburgh if you own a house it’s how many years you owned your house that counts as time on the waiting list, if rent private the waiting time only starts when you fill the form. Councils houses a bit of a racket in Edinburgh poorest people less likely to qualify. So if someone lived in Edinburgh in private owned house for 30 years and never applied for council house the have 30 years waiting time instantly added if applied. If a homeless person applied its just from the date they fill the form a homeowner does not need to fill the form to be on list its from date bought property also considered on council waiting list. (They are classed as movers if an owner and have waiting time added, if rent private or homeless are classed as new an no waiting time added)
Edinburgh leisure is another racket. It is often worse off people subsiding better off someone on a low income or unemployed could not afford to use Edinburgh leisure’s £ 50 a month gym membership but would use a non-subsidized cheaper private faculty such as Puregym for £ 17 a month.
Permit parking is often another subsidy a space in George street may be worth what £6000 a year yet the council rent them below costs the residents of George street effectively pay a negative council tax if take in to account market pricing.
The council like much of government also subsidies the staff with above market pension and conditions subsides there Edinburgh leisure membership. Part of council tax is the pleasure of paying for Edinburgh council workers leisure. The harder working lowest income in non-protected employment has to pay to effectively subsidies insurance of many public sector workers. (although council are not worse offenders in this area).
There is many things that are not clearly a public benefit yet are subsidies it may have been a policy decision to subsidies garden waste (or not)like many of the others things subsides may not be clear if was or was not (just grandfathered in) and if changed.
In a sense it possibly was implicitly policy after many years; but either way there is many things that would come under the same grey area as garden waste so why the distinction?.
There may be some correlation between having access to a garden and income yet some high value flats in town don’t and some fairly humble houses on the edge of town have a garden. Although the public benefits of a garden may be small, more possibly public benefit than a lot of the councils other subsidies such as paying a judge to use the tram or paying for millionaire to park car in George street, or paying the chiefs of Edinburgh councils gym membership. If charges are to be introduced for things with low public good then would guess should be some things chargeable before garden waste if following some sort of system of evaluation and estimating the public good element of different spending.
I would guess like most thing in politics someone just though a good idea wont lose too many votes without some deeper scientific evaluation of public benefits of spending.
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