TWO weeks ago Graham Woolley asked Wigan Council to remove some unwanted furniture from his Leigh home.

He was given a date it would be collected, but added an extra chair to the pile workmen expected to find in the drive.

When he returned to his Taunton Avenue home after walking his dog, Graham was gobsmacked to find the shifters had been and removed the six items on the list they had been given, but left the tatty old recliner.

He couldn't believe it and had a bit of a rant at both the council -- and me.

A furious Graham said on making the appointment he'd given the council a list of six items, but decided to add a chair, which was obviously rubbish, to the stack.

He said the men who called must have had to carry everything round it to leave it there, and now it would mean him making another appointment and having a long wait for collection or breaking it up and putting it in the bin.

I can understand the anger and agree with the jobsworth accusations, but I also accept the council's reasoning.

What if it had been a battered, but valuable antique that needed restoring and they'd carted it off?

A couple of years ago an old school friend rang me to say council clearers had taken away her new bags of top soil instead of the trash she'd left in the garage. So they can't win.

That's why they have to work by the book.