Birmingham declares major incident over bin strikes as 17,000 tonnes of rubbish piles up and rats run riot
31 March 2025, 23:36 | Updated: 1 April 2025, 15:56
A major incident has been declared in Birmingham amid an ongoing bin strike, which has left thousands of tonnes of rubbish piled up across the city.
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At least 17,000 tonnes of rubbish is strewn across the city’s streets, as “rats the size of cats” run riot amid the ongoing dispute.
Birmingham City Council said it made the "regrettable" step due to growing concerns of public health as striking workers prevented waste from being collected.
Unite union began its strike on March 11 over a pay dispute, with workers claiming staff have been left £8,000 worse off.
The council says declaring a major incident will initially increase the availability of street cleansing and fly-tip removal, with an additional 35 vehicles and crews around the city.
It will also allow the council to explore what further support is available from neighbouring authorities and the Government, to help manage the situation, and work with partners to better manage health and fire risks that the build-up of rubbish is causing.
But Unite general secretary Sharon Graham has described the council’s approach as “disastrous” and pledged to "defend Birmingham's refuse workforce to the hilt."
Speaking outside Birmingham City Council House, leader John Cotton said he was "determined to take every measure we can to address the very serious scenes we now see play out in certain parts of our city".
He added: "It's regrettable that we have had to take this step, but we cannot tolerate a situation that is causing harm and distress to communities across Birmingham.
Read more: Birmingham bin strike: Why are they striking and why have they declared a major incident?
"I respect the right to strike and protest, however actions on the picket line must be lawful and sadly the behaviour of some now means we are seeing a significant impact on residents and the city's environment.
"Unless we declare a major incident and deploy the waste service's contingency plan, then we would be unable to clear the backlog of waste on the streets or improve the frequency of collections."
Residents have complained of hoards of “rats the size of cats” running riot across the city amid the dispute.
Aston resident Sam Ali told the Telegraph: “A week ago, the wires in my sister’s car were all eaten up by rats”, adding: “There are a lot more rats running on the road. Many are the size of cats and kittens.”
Communities minister Jim McMahon said the Government "stands ready" to respond to any request for extra resources from Birmingham.
He told the Commons: "Well-established arrangements are in place for local areas to escalate issues where they do need support and the Government is monitoring the situation closely.
"This is a local issue and it's right that it's led by key public sector partners in Birmingham itself.
"If local leaders on the ground in Birmingham feel that tackling these issues goes beyond the resources available to them and they request national support, then of course we stand ready to respond to any such request.
"This Government will always back local leaders and give them the support that they need - not swoop in to criticise or take over from Whitehall. This Government will not hesitate to give support in any way that Birmingham leaders need."
A Government spokesperson said the dispute has caused “misery” for the people of Birmingham and must be resolved urgently.
The spokesman said: “The waste dispute in Birmingham is causing misery and disruption to residents and so we are urging for an immediate agreement to be made.
“It is right that this continues to be a locally led response, as is usual in the case of council-run services.
“But we are monitoring the situation closely and will not hesitate to act should the council require additional support.”
