Despite families recycling almost twice as much rubbish as five years ago, the government's targets on waste have still not been met.

Following the survey of municipal waste managers, a spokeswoman for Friends of the Earth said: "At this rate we won't reach the target for another 12 years."

A spokesman for Defra told ePolitix.com: "The household recycling rate has gone up to 12.4 per cent but clearly there is some way to go.

"But we have started to make progress on the war on waste. We have almost doubled the amount of household recycling since 1996."

Forum Response: Local Government Association

Councillor Ken Manton, chair of the Local Government Association's Waste and Environmental Management Executive, told ePolitix.com: "The decrease in the percentage of waste that goes to landfill sites is a step in the right direction and reflects the commitment of local authorities towards the environment.

"The LGA confidently expects this upward trend to continue as more councils complete the implementation of their recycling schemes.

"However, the responsibility for waste reduction does not rest solely with local authorities. A national awareness campaign on waste reduction by the government would be welcomed and manufacturers need to begin evaluating the materials used in packaging."

Forum Response: Biffa Waste Services

Peter Jones, external affairs director of Biffa, told ePolitix.com: "It must be gratifying for the government to see a positive uplift in the recycling percentages but Friends of the Earth's observations are opposite.

"One should not ignore the significant financial cost at which these improvements have been gained. Our own estimates suggest that around £600 million in various guises has been committed to delivering this strategy at a cost of up to £150 per tonne.

"This does not smack of best value and the government would be far better advised to push landfill tax up at a substantially accelerated rate if it is to achieve compliance within the timetable to which it has signed up."