The city council have recently purchased a new machine, Hako, at a cost of £75K, but neutral to budget.

Its mechanical ripping method is helping to get on top of the weeds in the city, which have grown extra-fast this year due to the heavy rain and warm weather we’ve been experiencing.

Hako clears the weeds very throughly and prevents their regrowth more effectively next time round, as it rips the plant from the root.

It also helps us reduce our use of chemical sprays to kill the weeds, so saving us money and helping us reach our biodiversity and climate commitments.

The only real downside is that it is a small machine and has to be emptied frequently at the depot in Eastern Avenue.

As part of my budget proposals for next year’s budget I will be aiming to purchase a second machine so that we can divide the city into north and south and speed up the weed removal process even more.