Labour are more interested in putting union barons before Brummies

9 April 2025, 22:46 | Updated: 9 April 2025, 22:50

Birmingham is home to the world’s first factory, it has more canals than Venice and is the birthplace of heavy metal.

Despite the Labour Council’s best efforts, it’s still a proud city.

But they have bankrupted its Council, sent Council Tax skyrocketing and now completely capitulated to the unions.

Rats the size of cats now terrorise local residents and people have to wade through 21,000 tonnes of rubbish to go about their day to day lives.

It is a public health emergency, and it is about time Labour start treating it like one rather than constantly trying to save face.

Try as they might to pull their party trick, where Labour Ministers try and blame everyone but themselves for their own mess, people are not mugs.

This is a crisis made solely by the Labour Party.

First, Labour bankrupted the Council. Local Labour MPs aren’t sorting it out.

And now, this Labour government is refusing to deal with it. It should be incumbent on the Labour Party to clean up the mess they have made.

For once, they should put party politics aside and work in the national interest.

It is so bad that neighbouring Conservative councils, like Lichfield, are having to step in and help clean the streets because the Labour council can’t, or won’t, deliver this basic service to locals.

Where Labour fails, as always, the Conservatives will clear up their mess.

As well as shouldering the burden locally, Conservatives have made a number of sensible measures that would help Labour deal with this situation.

That includes getting in strike breakers who will help take out the trash.

But Labour seem determined not to listen. Why? Because they’re too scared to take on the unions. Clearly, they are more interested in putting union barons before Brummies.

Since Starmer became leader, unions have poured over £30 million into Labour’s coffers.

Unite – the union behind the strike – even handed Angela Rayner £10,000 personally.

Is it any surprise she’s done nothing? She should return the money immediately.

Keir Starmer said repeatedly throughout the election that he would put country before party.

This is a health emergency, so this is Starmer’s chance to prove he said what he meant, and he meant what he said.

Sadly, I think that will be yet another one of 100+ promises he’s broken since becoming leader of the Labour Party.

I hope in the national interest he is a leopard that can change his spots.

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Kevin Hollinrake is Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

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