A war of words has broken out among opposition councillors in Renfrewshire after Labour were accused of “joining forces” with the SNP during a debate on the garden waste permit.

A motion put forward by councillors Eddie Devine and John Hood, which called for the £40 charge to be scrapped, was defeated last Thursday after it only managed the support of the Conservative group’s five members.

The SNP agreed to an amendment suggested by the Labour group which would see a review of the operation of the scheme – with a specific focus on churches and charities.

The situation led to Councillor Devine claiming Labour have “no guts” at the full council meeting. He added in a scathing attack of his former party: “They’ll stand up for nothing. They don’t want any hassle.”

Councillor Neill Graham, Conservative group leader, has since said: “Local people across Renfrewshire will be appalled to see Labour councillors joining forces with the SNP on this issue.

“The hated garden waste tax is hitting local people hard during a cost-of-living crisis, yet Labour shamefully voted against plans to scrap it.”

The annual fee – which was rolled out as part of a service change in July – had previously been met with backlash among opposition members.

It means residents in the local authority who want their garden waste collected need a valid permit displayed on their brown bin.

However, Councillor Iain McMillan, Labour group leader, was unfazed by the comments from his political rivals and said his “conscience is clear” in terms of his party’s performance in opposition in Renfrewshire.

He said: “I think if anybody took the time to come along to the meetings, they’d see what we actually do. Whether it’s Dargavel, bin collections, parking increases, staffing issues, whatever, we’re holding them to account on a day-to-day basis.

“Eddie fell out with the Labour Party. He’s obviously going to bad mouth us. I get on well with Eddie, I don’t have a problem with him personally, but if he wants to make those comments, we’re not going to sit and take them.

“My conscience is clear in terms of what we do as an opposition. I’ve got the thickest skin you would ever know, comments like that don’t affect me one bit.

“Whether it’s Eddie having a go at us or Neill Graham, it doesn’t bother me one bit. That’s just politics. There wasn’t any plans to scrap it [the garden waste permit].

“I don’t think Eddie and John Hood put up plans to scrap it, they just shouted for it to be scrapped. It’s dead easy to shout that. We never voted against any plans, we amended their motion and it was accepted by the SNP.”

A permit is not needed by residents who are presenting food waste only in their brown bin, since its uplift is a statutory requirement. Meanwhile, an exemption on payment is offered to householders entitled to full council tax reduction or with a severe mental impairment.

SNP council leader Iain Nicolson defended the permit scheme at last week’s meeting, describing it as an “opt-in service”.

He added: “We can’t afford to prioritise hedge-clippings over jobs. We have to prioritise services, we have to prioritise the jobs of our employees, those people who deliver those services.”