UK ministers have drafted in military planners to ease pressure caused by a month-long bin strike that has led to rubbish piling up across Birmingham, as unions vote on whether to end industrial action on Monday.
Angela Rayner, deputy prime minister and local government minister, has called in army officials to help with logistics and planning as Birmingham City Council seeks to deal with a vast pile-up of waste, particularly in poorer areas of the city that cannot afford commercial waste clearance.
Government officials stressed that army personnel were not being used on the ground to clear the rubbish, but instead to provide planning expertise for the large-scale clearing operation.
Rubbish collection in Britain’s second city has been severely reduced since Unite the union began all-out industrial action last month. The walkout was called in response to the council’s decision to restructure the service, which Unite says will mean a pay cut of £8,000 for some workers.
A new deal proposed by the council, which declared effective bankruptcy in 2023, to Unite workers last week in an effort to end the strike has been put to union members for a vote.
But Unite said it was not recommending the offer to its members since it represented only a “partial deal” that did not address what the union claims is an impending pay cut for an additional 200 lorry drivers.
Results of the ballot are expected on Monday afternoon.
Birmingham’s public finances are in disarray after a £100mn software debacle and a £250mn liability for an equal pay claim. The local authority’s latest budget included a large council tax rise as well as cuts to library and adult social care services.
The government said: “In light of the ongoing public health risk, a small number of office-based military personnel with operational planning expertise have been made available to Birmingham City Council to further support in this area.
“This builds on a range of measures we’ve supported the council on to date — including neighbouring authorities providing additional vehicles and crews, and opening household waste centres to Birmingham residents.”
On Thursday, Birmingham council said a single weekly collection was being maintained for each property in the city, but added that delays caused by picket lines at depots had led to “uneven collection across the city”.
