MORE people are recycling in the North-East and North Yorkshire.

Recycling of paper, organic waste, glass, plastic bottles and tin cans was up 2.5 per cent in 2002-2003 compared with the previous year in North Yorkshire, and up 28 per cent in the North-East.

The best-performing area in North Yorkshire was Harrogate district, which increased from nine per cent to 18 per cent, and in the North-East, Darlington borough, which rose from 12 per cent to 13 per cent.

A Darlington Borough Council spokesman said the figures were taken before it started its kerbside recycling scheme last year and that the figure was now 17 per cent.

He said: "It has been a tremendous success. Our scheme is listed among Friends of the Earth's top ten recycling schemes in the country."

The only area where recycling had reduced for the period was Scarborough district where, in 2002-2003, seven per cent of household rubbish was recycled, but this fell to six per cent.

Sunderland recycled the least, with only two per cent of household waste being recycled. Redcar and Cleveland borough was slightly better, with three per cent.

A spokesman for Sunderland City Council said the Government figures were taken from before it introduced a kerbside recycling scheme, and that the figure had increased to 6.5 per cent.

All councils must recycle a quarter of households' waste by 2005-2006.

Environment Minister Elliott Morley congratulated local councils for their work to improve recycling rates, but said that a minority were still not doing enough, with some not achieving the minimum target of ten per cent.