Ilkley resident, well-known businessmen and anti-litter campaigner, Thomas Black, the has written a new book, castigating the litter louts who “desecrate our beautiful Yorkshire countryside”.
Ironically titled What A Load of Rubbish, the book is the latest in a series of anti-litter initiatives that 86-year-old Thomas has launched during the past decade.
The former Joint Chairman of the Keighley-based Peter Black Holdings, a major supplier of a wide range of products and services to the leading UK retailers, Thomas made the hugely popular films Don’t Drop Litter or Else! and When I’m Cleaning Lay-bys. Together they received more than 500,000 hits on YouTube.
Thomas, who lives in Ilkley, commented:
“I was completely bowled over by the success of these two films which clearly struck a chord with many people. The rapidly increasingly amount of litter in our towns and cities, as well as our countryside, is a national disgrace.
“Encouraged by the reaction to my films, I wanted to get my thoughts about litter – especially who drops it and why – down on paper. What A Load of Rubbish is the result. The anti-litter message is as hard-hitting as ever, and I hope my book makes it clear that dropping litter of any sort is anti-social, bad for the environment and eventually hits us all in the pocket”.
Robbie Moore, the Conservative MP for Keighley, has written the forward to What A Load of Rubbish. He pays tribute to Thomas, saying:
“I hope you are inspired by Thomas’s journey and reminded that every effort, no matter how small, contributes to a cleaner, safer and more connected society.”
Thomas explained:
“My key message is that we need to change our culture as a nation when it comes to litter. Just look at Japan, where it’s pretty much unthinkable to drop litter. Japan has a recycling rate of 77 per cent, while ours is 36 per cent. What an indictment of us as a nation.”
“So who drops litter and why? There is no easy answer to this, but I believe the combination of single-use plastic by major retailers and a society without discipline and declining family values is at the heart of the problem. The first problem is easier to solve than the second and it is high time that global retailers such as McDonalds, KFC, Burger King and Costa Coffee and took proper responsibility for the litter their food and drink creates.
“It is enlightened self-interest to campaign against littering. It is estimated that more than £1bn of local government money is spent on collecting litter every year. It therefore follows that less litter means more money for education, the police, the social services etc – and would also help to keep Council Tax low,”
he said.
“I am lucky enough to live in one of the most beautiful areas of Yorkshire, on the outskirts of Ilkley, and it makes me so cross – and so sad – to see how many people disrespect the countryside and dump their revolting litter anywhere they want,” explained Thomas. “This led me to launch the Ilkley Litter Picker Of the Year Award in 2021, which has proved a moderate success.”
Thomas is keen to pay tribute to his friends and family who have contributed to What A Load of Rubbish, including the Timpson family, who inspired the book; Jeff Yates, a tireless anti-litter campaigner from Guiseley; Mark Dexter, ex-Sky journalist; Trevor Wilson, publisher who helped get the book over the line; and Thomas’s own son Daniel.
Thomas concluded:
“Without doubt, the challenge we face is changing the culture of littering and to educate the litterer. We need to make them feel valued and proud of their environment and their community. That is down to both parental influence and schools. At the same time, the single plastic packaging problem must be tackled and major retailers need to place the anti-littering message at the heart of their operations.
“Anyway, writing this book has been very cathartic and has left me with a feeling of optimism. I really do believe the tide is turning in our favour towards a better and cleaner environment. I do hope this book plays a small part in creating a nation, like Japan, in which dropping litter is the frowned-upon exception, rather than the norm.”
What A Load of Rubbish is free and available from Alison Archer, Thomas’s PA, at alison@blackfamilyinvestments.co.uk