Householders are facing an extra tax on their rubbish under plans announced today to increase recycling and reduce landfill waste.

In a policy document entitled Waste Strategy for England 2007, David Miliband, the Environment Secretary, will disclose proposals to allow local councils to implement a “pay-as-you-throw” scheme using wheelie bins fitted with electronic sensors. He will also propose measures to cut down on junk mail and supermarket plastic bags, The Times has learnt.

The “chip and bin” and other measures are part of a new plan to reduce household and commercial waste over the next 20 years. They follow statistics showing that Britain has the worst recycling rates in the EU after Greece and Portugal: Britain recycles 18 per cent of its rubbish, compared with 58 per cent in Germany.

In a Commons statement, Mr Miliband, who has said that “the polluter must pay”, is expected to announce much tougher targets for businesses and local councils, who already face stiff EU penalties for landfill waste from 2010.

But it is plans for a rubbish tax – which has Gordon Brown’s backing – that will be most strongly resisted by householders. A survey for the Channel 4 Dispatches programme shown tonight reveals that more than two thirds of the public are against rubbish charges.

Critics of the plan said it would lead to more fly-tipping, with people throwing their bags into neighbours’ back yards. Residents would also complain that they were paying twice for their waste to be collected: households are charged about £140 a year on their council tax for this service.

Many people are already up in arms about fortnightly rubbish collections, which operate in one in three councils and which produced a furious response at the local elections.

Mr Miliband will stress that the new bin laws will not be mandatory and councils could choose how to collect extra cash. But figures published by the Conservatives yesterday after a freedom of information request show that one in seven town halls already have bins fitted with microchips, affecting up to four million households.

Eric Pickles, the Tory local government spokesman, said: “I am concerned that introducing bin taxes would increase fly-tipping and harm the local environment. But our research suggests that chips are quietly being fitted in bins across the country to spy on families without their knowledge.”

A consultation paper from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, will propose today a series of options for collecting charges. Local government sources admitted that one plan would be to assess the volume and weight of nonrecyclable rubbish through the chip method.

Households that threw out more black-bin waste would face higher charges, which could be added to council tax bills, while those disposing of less would have their bills reduced.

Lord Bruce-Lockhart, chairman of the Local Government Association, said that any charges should not increase net revenue from council tax. “It is vital that any council that considers a ‘save-as-you-throw’ scheme guarantees there will be no overall increase in council tax, it has public support and tough measures are in place to prevent fly-tipping,” he said.

Plans to levy charges for rubbish were first raised by Sir Michael Lyons, the new chairman of the BBC, in his inquiry on local government finance this year. While the proposals had Mr Miliband’s backing, the Chancellor was less enthusiastic, fearing the public response.

Government sources told The Times that Mr Brown was now happy to let Mr Miliband and Ruth Kelly, the Communities Secretary, go ahead.

The strategy is also expected to support plans for sealed containers for food waste which could be collected weekly. This would produce methane, which could be converted into alternative energy.

Sources said that householders would only receive direct mail if they signed on to a special register.

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