Birmingham City Council has confirmed it is still unable to restart its garden waste collection service, with the long-running bins strike continuing to cause major disruption.
Service Suspension and Financial Impact
The seasonal garden waste service was suspended last spring due to industrial action, leaving many subscribers who had already paid for the year without the service. The council subsequently reimbursed those residents. The estimated loss of income from suspending the garden waste service is £4.4 million. With the industrial dispute now dragging into its second year, the Labour-run authority has stated a reintroduction is currently impossible.
Council's Response and Future Plans
Councillor Majid Mahmood, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, acknowledged the public's frustration. "We recognise that residents have been without this service for a year and we are as frustrated as they are," he said. "Unfortunately, we are unable to reintroduce the garden waste service at the moment."
He emphasised that restoring the service remains a priority. The council is pinning its hopes on a major transformation of its waste services, which was delayed by the strike but is now scheduled to begin in June 2024. This overhaul is a key part of the council's recovery plan and will involve significant changes.
Transformation of Waste Services
The planned changes include moving general waste collections from weekly to fortnightly. In their place, the council will introduce weekly food waste collections and provide a second recycling bin specifically for paper and cardboard. These changes are set to be rolled out in phases across the city, regardless of whether the industrial action is ongoing.
In the meantime, with spring approaching, Cllr Mahmood suggested alternatives for residents. "We know that as spring approaches citizens will be out in their gardens and will look at options such as composting their green waste or taking it to one of our five household recycling centres," he stated. Details for the recycling centres can be found on the council's website.
The bins strike dispute between the Unite union and the council was initially triggered by the proposed removal of the Waste Recycling and Collection Officer role. Over the past year, striking workers have claimed they face pay cuts of up to £8,000, a figure the council disputes. Despite talks, the two sides have failed to reach a resolution, with the council maintaining it has made a fair offer.
