It's what it said on the Liberal Democrat tin: No incinerator!

And Councillor Gary Hopkins, who is expected to once again take charge of waste and recycling in the city, will be putting the party's top priority straight into action.

He will aim to halt the city council's role in the West of England Partnership bid for Government cash in the form of PFI (private finance initiative) credits.

This would have meant millions of pounds towards half the cost of one or more major waste treatment plants.

The West chucks out hundreds of thousands of tonnes of household waste every year.

What we do not recycle has to be treated or dumped in landfill sites, incurring huge penalties and taxes imposed by government.

The outgoing Labour administration had pinned its colours to the mast over the PFI bid – which would have helped the region avoid the landfill trap.

But the Lib Dems believe it would have been too expensive and could have landed us with an incinerator at Avonmouth.

That option, if it had ever been chosen, would not only have been unpopular, they believe. It would have been unnecessary, too.

Cllr Hopkins' priority now is to ensure alternatives to incineration or landfill are available at the right price and capable of handling the West's rubbish.

One of Labour's arguments for pressing on with the PFI bid was that swingeing penalties would have to be paid to neighbouring North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Councils if Bristol pulled out of their joint waste strategy.

South Gloucestershire has also let it be known that the cost to the three partner councils if no scheme was agreed would be £357 million over 30 years – or £12 million a year. It also said the cost of adopting a non-PFI scheme for financing waste treatment long-term would cost £142 million.

But former Lib Dem leader Steve Comer accused Labour of "bluff and bluster" on the subject and denied that PFI was "the only show in town".

Mr Hopkins says the PFI bid could have seen local councils paying an estimated £100 a tonne for waste treatment. He believes an alternative arrangement could cost a lot less.