Warning over ‘criminal opportunists’ fly-tipping during Birmingham bin strike

Enormous piles of fly-tipped waste are plaguing several neighbourhoods across Birmingham as the city remains gripped by the strike.

The industrial action, which started in January, was triggered by a dispute between the Labour-run council and Unite the union over the scrapping of a job role.

With the strike continuing to cause chaos and unpleasant scenes in the city, the council said today, March 25, that some fly-tippers were taking advantage of the situation.

“A huge problem we have, even in this current situation, is a number of criminal opportunists who are taking industrial action as an opportunity to knock people’s doors and ask for money to dispose of the waste,” Councillor Majid Mahmood, cabinet member for environment, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

“We have evidence now that some of that waste is being dumped on street corners.

“I go to a different part of the city every day and yes, there are black bags on street corners but there are also fridges, mattresses, bed bases – they don’t fit into wheelie bins. That is fly-tipping, that is criminal.”

He continued: “We will prosecute whenever we have the evidence and my ask of all people is use the avenues available to dispose of your waste safely.

“If you have any evidence of people who are blighting our city with fly-tipped items, please let us know – we will take strong action against them.”

Asked what his direct message would be to these “criminal opportunists”, Councillor Mahmood said: “Don’t do it – we will get the footage and we will prosecute you. Zero-tolerance approach.”

Unite organised the Birmingham bins strike because of the council’s plans to scrap the Waste Recycling and Collection Officer role, which the union described as “safety-critical”.

“The council could end this dispute tomorrow by agreeing to pay a decent rate of pay,” Unite national lead officer Onay Kasab has said.

“The council is forcing dedicated workers onto pay levels barely above the minimum wage while undertaking a difficult and highly demanding job in all weathers.”

During today’s interview with the LDRS, Councillor Mahmood reiterated that the council had made a “fair and reasonable offer”, adding: “Not a single worker needs to lose a penny.

“Every worker has been offered the same grade and the same pay within the street scene division of the city council.”

“Residents of Birmingham want and deserve a better waste collection service and the restructure that Unite is opposing is part of the much-needed transformation of the service,” a council spokesperson also previously said.

The authority said its routes and working practices were fully risk-assessed and health and safety was “everyone’s responsibility”.