Birmingham is facing a major health and environmental hazard as an estimated 17,000 tonnes of rubbish continues to rot on the streets, with the situation worsening daily by nearly 900 tonnes. With collections occurring only once every 7 weeks on average, but varying across the city, the crisis has reached a breaking point. Following 3 months of indecision and lack of action by the Labour Administration, officers of the Council have now been forced into declaring a Major Incident due to the rubbish and rats on the streets of Birmingham.
Whilst it is hoped it will stop the rubbish piles from getting exponentially worse, their declaration of a major incident does nothing to resolve the strike itself and is something that should have happened weeks ago.
Cllr Robert Alden (Con, Erdington), Leader of the Opposition and Birmingham Local Conservatives, stated:
This should have happened weeks ago. With 17,000 tonnes of rubbish piling up and growing by almost 900 tonnes a day, the city is on the brink of a public health emergency. The streets are littered, the bins are overflowing, and the rats & maggots are spreading. This is the Birmingham that Labour has created. This is all too little too late. While Local Conservatives have put forward plans to end the strike and clean up the city, Birmingham Labour have been asleep at the wheel. The only way to clean up Birmingham long-term is to clear out Labour in 2026 and back Local Conservatives – the only people with a plan to clean up Birmingham.
The Administration’s inability to lead and settle their dispute with Unite has brought the city to its knees. They’ve broken their promises on weekly bin collections, failed to address the burgeoning rat problem, and have continued to bury their heads in the sand.
Birmingham Local Conservatives have previously published our plan to end the strikes and clean up Birmingham:
1) Protect staff trying to do their job.
2) Ensure all continuing Equal Pay risks are removed.
3) Place deadlines on any offers made to settle the bin dispute.
4) Complete the review of the service's future operating model, to deliver the best value.
5) Investigate using non-safety critical roles on flexible contracts to clear the streets.
6) Fully implement Birmingham Local Conservatives Plan for a Cleaner City, including scrapping the ‘Rat Tax’.
