THE man at the centre of a rubbish dispute has been told he will not be fined or face court action for putting his bins out six hours early.

Darlington Borough Council has made the U-turn following an internal investigation into the case of Chris Grainge, who said earlier in the week that he would go to prison rather than pay a £50 fine.

But the 33-year-old from Darlington says he is disappointed he will not get the chance to make his point to the council, who he says are pressuring vulnerable residents of the town.

He said: "When they came to my door they said I had two options, to pay the fine there and then or they would take me to court. They didn't say it was pending an investigation.

"I'm concerned that more vulnerable people who don't know how to say no would just pay the fine when actually they might not have to.

"I think what they are doing is bullying people on their doorsteps to make £50."

A council spokeswoman said the fine was cancelled after Mr Grainge had contacted the council to discuss the issue.

She said: "From the start, we have made it clear that we treat every case individually and we can take personal circumstances into account when issuing fines.

"Now we have had chance to talk to Mr Grainge about his situation, we have completed our investigation and have decided not to issue a fine.

"As is normal in these situations, a formal warning will be issued."

But Mr Grainge said that although the fine had been cancelled, he is still not satisfied with the refuse disposal service being offered in the town.

"We shouldn't be asked to keep waste in our back gardens. It's a potential hazard," he said.

Local ward councillor Kate Davies is backing Mr Grainge and said rats were a problem in the area.

She said: "Waste management is under review, and I would hope that wheelie bins would be the solution to the existing problems. We are very unusual as a local authority in that we don't have them already.

"Mr Grainge has recently moved to the town and his welcome has been a fine and a public argument. But I don't want him to move away and would like to show him Darlington is a good place to live."