Dirty streets and missed dustbin collections have plagued Brighton and Hove ever since Sita became responsible for getting rid of the city's waste.

But in getting rid of Sita, the council saddled itself with an enormous problem. Sita, like its predecessors, Ecovert South and Focsa, ran the service as a loss leader, disguising the true costs.

When the council asked other companies if they were interested in running the service, it became clear the cost would rise by millions of pounds a year.

This was no laughing matter for an authority which already looks as if it could be £5 million in the red by next April.

Now the council is considering going back to running the service in-house as it always was in the past.

It is what most of the workforce wants and many councillors are keen on it too. But have they forgotten the horrendous problems there were in Brighton?

The service was a byword for inefficiency. There were constant strikes and disputes. Industrial relations were appalling.

If an in-house service is established, the council will have to ensure an efficient and positive management far better than anything the three private contracting firms could manage.

But the men will have to play their part too. In getting what they want, they will also have to give a good service and ensure that for the first time in years, the city streets are clean.