The Wombles have been drafted in to help the recycling effort

A radio and television campaign in the city will urge people to think harder before throwing away rubbish.

TV characters the Wombles, who were known for recycling, will also be encouraging tennis fans at Wimbledon to recycle more.

London recycles just 11% of the 17m tonnes of rubbish it produces each year - less than half the government's target of 25%.

Paul Sanderson, from Materials Recycling Week magazine, said some Londoners were confused about what could be recycled.

He added: "There's a lot of flats in London which makes it difficult to recycle, plus there's just an attitude that people don't see it as something they want to do (they think) that the rubbish should be collected by the local council."

New figures from the Greater London Authority suggest that 83% of Londoners say it is easier to recycle household waste than ever before.