Birmingham City Council has confirmed major changes to bin collections are set to be introduced as the authority promises to 'clean up the city'. The future of the city's waste collection service is a pressing issue for the new administration, formed of a coalition involving the Lib Dems, Greens and various independents.
Changes Confirmed by Cabinet Member
Coun Harris Khaliq, the new cabinet member for city services and digital, has now confirmed that changes are being introduced, including: fortnightly collections of general household waste, a weekly food waste collection, and a second recycling bin. He added that these changes will be supported by 'parallel activity taking place' including extra clean-up measures and new investment into enforcement.
'One of our key commitments as the council's new administration is to clean up this fantastic city, which is why it's essential for the changes in relation to waste collection to go ahead, supported by additional measures,' Coun Khaliq said. 'We are initially piloting the improved service in order to gather data and feedback so we can make informed decisions on what works best for residents.'
Details of the New Service
He continued: 'We want residents to have the best waste service and the new improved service will mean more waste capacity. People getting the new service will be getting a weekly food waste collection, following the successful pilot, and a second recycling bin. This means that all that will be left for the fortnightly general waste collection will be whatever can't be recycled – so the waste that causes the most concern, such as smelly food leftovers, will be collected weekly. All this will be supported with parallel activity taking place including extra clean-up measures and new investment into enforcement so we can all do our bit to keep the city clean.'
Conservative Opposition
Only earlier this month, the Birmingham Tories argued that weekly bin collections of household rubbish 'remain an essential service for many households and should be protected'. Reacting to confirmation of the changes being brought in, Conservative group leader Coun Robert Alden said: 'Residents were promised change. Instead, they are getting more of the same. The last 18 months have shown the mess that rapidly builds up across Birmingham when reliable weekly collections do not happen. But now the new council administration have abandoned that position at the first opportunity.'
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service earlier this month, Coun Alden said: 'The Local Conservative Group want to see weekly bin collections retained as part of an effort to clean up Birmingham. That's what we campaigned on in the election and that's why we recently wrote to the administration, calling on them to retain weekly bin collections. When you look at Birmingham – a city with larger than average families, a dense population and actually a lot of terraced houses, flats and HMOs – you need to retain weekly bin collections to avoid the scenes we saw during the beginning of the bins strike.'
Background
A transformation project, including major changes to bin collections, had been previously pushed back due to the bins strike and then uncertainty over the council's leadership. The new administration is now moving forward with the changes, aiming to improve the city's cleanliness and waste management.
