'Birmingham will always have a fantastic reputation' - insists Government minister despite finance and bin chaos

Local government minister Jim McMahon and deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, visited Birmingham yesterday, April 10, after a major incident was declared earlier this month.

Industrial action has seen streets blighted by enormous mountains of rubbish; growing fears over rats and warnings the city faced a public health emergency.

The city council has taken action to clear the huge backlog of waste in recent days, with more trucks now able to leave the depots.

But the industrial action, which was triggered by a dispute between the Labour-run council and Unite the union, has left some fearing for Birmingham’s reputation as the situation attracts headlines from across the world.

Andy Street, the former Conservative mayor of the West Midlands, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, recently that the city’s reputation was “in the mud again” because of the strike.

During an interview with the Local Democracy Reporting Service yesterday, Mr McMahon downplayed the idea that Birmingham’s reputation had been harmed by the bins strike and the council’s financial crisis.

“Birmingham will always have a reputation of being a fantastic, thriving city,” he said. “There’s no doubt the local authority has faced difficulty – that’s why there’s commissioners are in place, that’s why it’s got a recovery plan.”

Coun Majid Mahmood, the cabinet member for environment at the council, struck a similar tone last month, saying: “I don’t think the reputation of Birmingham has taken a hit.

“Yes, we’ve got industrial action and we’re dealing with it.”

Mr McMahon said council leader Coun John Cotton and new managing director Joanne Roney had given the crisis-hit council “a very clear direction and a clear path to improvement”.

“If that path is followed and the pace is maintained, then we all hope Birmingham comes out of intervention sooner than later and gets back to that normality.

“Then our job, from a central government point of view, is to make sure we fix the foundations of local government more generally.”

Providing an update on the action taken to tackle the impact of the strike, Mr McMahon said: “We went from a situation where there were barely 20 trucks leaving the depot to 120 – we are seeing a significant increase in the tonnage being collected.

“We’ve also got mutual aid coming in from other local authorities and that provides capacity.

“On top of that, the council has redeployed street cleaning staff and other personnel.

“What that’s meant is the accumulated waste, that was in the thousands of tonnes that was being built up on the street corners, is being cleared and hopefully people are seeing the improvements of that.”

Asked if it looked likely a resolution between the council and Unite could be found soon, Mr McMahon said: “It’s our expectation all parties want to find a solution to this as soon as possible because in the end, the waste being accumulated on the streets is not sustainable.

“Local people have a right to receive good public services and many of them are facing completely unacceptable levels of waste.

“The council has done a fantastic job, in my view, of clearing the backlog – not least due to the good support of local authorities and partners in Birmingham.”

He also discussed the possibility of strike action being suspended while negotiations continue.

“We want the agreement to be reached as soon as possible,” he said. “If that takes longer, and it may well take longer, we believe the deal on the table is a good deal and there’s no reason in negotiating that deal, that action couldn’t be suspended in that period.

“The council has made an improved offer, it’s a good offer […] but we need to have an eye always on what the people of Birmingham are facing in terms of the impact.”

Ms Rayner said: “The people of Birmingham are our first priority – this dispute is causing misery and disruption to residents and the backlog must be dealt with quickly to address public health risks.

“My department is working with Birmingham City Council to support its response to accelerate clearing the backlog and rapidly improve the situation on the ground.

“Neighbouring authorities are providing additional vehicles and crews, and we are providing logistical support.

“I have pressed both sides to negotiate at pace to urgently find a resolution.

“There is now a better offer on the table and I would urge Unite to suspend the action and accept the improved deal so we achieve fairness for both workers and residents of this city.”

Union leaders pledged this week to ballot Birmingham’s bins workforce over whether to accept a ‘new deal’ to end the strike.

Unite said the ballot would close on Monday evening and ensure bin workers remained ‘in the driving seat’ over their next steps, with the union backing them ‘100 per cent of the way’ whatever the outcome.

The dispute is over the council’s plans to scrap a Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO), which the union said would force “dedicated workers onto pay levels barely above the minimum wage”.

However, the council’s political leadership has insisted a “fair and reasonable offer” has been made and “not a single worker needs to lose a penny”.