Birmingham refuse strike ‘must end’ says minister after visit to city

Birmingham’s bin strike “must be brought to a close”, a minister has said following a visit to the city where tonnes of rubbish has piled up on the streets.

Local government minister Jim McMahon met council chiefs on Thursday in an effort to end the strike that has seen refuse workers stage a complete walkout for almost a month.

But a readout of the meeting from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) listed no new actions, saying the Government would “support local partners in leading the recovery” as they “consider further interventions”.

Mr McMahon said: “Residents want this rubbish dealt with as soon as possible and I have made it clear in today’s meeting that we’re ready to support to improve conditions on the ground.

“It is in the interests of all parties, and most importantly Birmingham’s residents, that this strike must be brought to a close with all parties redoubling efforts to get around the table and to find a resolution.”

Members of Unite in Birmingham launched an all-out strike last month in a dispute over pay and jobs, which is causing misery for residents who say they face a public health crisis.

The council declared the dispute a major incident earlier this week in a bid to increase collections of bin sacks.

The MHCLG said that declaration had led to more crews and vehicles being brought in to deal with the mounting piles of rubbish on Birmingham’s streets.

Mr McMahon’s visit followed a letter from Unite general secretary Sharon Graham in which she told Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner the Government could no longer “sit on its hands”.

“This is an escalating issue and the Government cannot simply sit on its hands saying ‘nothing to do with us. We can’t get involved’,” she wrote.

“Let me be very clear, that the pay of these workers is being cut by a Labour council under your watch.

“The current escalation increasingly looks like a declaration of war on these workers.”

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman told reporters: “We want to see an agreement reached immediately on the waste dispute in Birmingham, which is causing misery and disruption to residents.

“It’s right that this continues to be a locally-led response, but minister McMahon will be visiting Birmingham today to meet with Birmingham’s senior officers, commissioners and political leadership to discuss this issue.

“We will not hesitate to act should the council require additional support.”

In the Commons, Labour minister Lucy Powell urged Unite to “step up” and continue talks with the council to reach an agreement.

Responding to criticism from the Conservatives, the Commons Leader told MPs: “I was in Birmingham just last weekend visiting my in-laws and my husband’s family and the situation there is totally unacceptable, it is awful what people are living with and we want to see it end and end immediately.”

She added: “I’ve no problem in saying that the trade union there, Unite, they absolutely need to step up here and get back round the table and come to an agreement.

“I think there is a reasonable agreement on the table and the trade union and the council should come to that very quickly.”

Shadow Commons leader Jesse Norman had said the situation in Birmingham “simply cannot continue” and questioned why ministers had not criticised Unite.

He highlighted donations from Unite to Labour candidates, now MPs, at last year’s general election as he asked: “Does the leader think there could be any relationship between the Government’s reluctance to call out Unite now on this disastrous situation in Birmingham and the £500,000 in donations that its MPs have just received?”