'People from other areas are now dumping rubbish'

Residents have said people are fly-tipping on top of existing rubbish

People are travelling across Birmingham to dump their rubbish with the existing 17,000 tonnes of waste building up on streets, residents have claimed.

Bin worker strikes have been ongoing in the city since January, and bin bags have been piled high on street corners, with an increase in rats and foxes reported.

Birmingham City Council declared a major incident on Monday in response to concerns for public health over the ongoing bin strikes.

Basmin Khan, a resident from Small Heath, has described the situation as "dire" and said people from out of the area are now coming in to leave their rubbish.

"Because it looks like a fly-tip area, people are coming in from other areas and they are just dumping their rubbish," she said.

Council leader John Cotton said there are further delays to the rollout of fortnightly bin collections due to the continued dispute between the council and Unite the Union.

He confirmed plans for fortnightly collections, food waste collections to reduce landfill, a new garden waste service and improved recycling were all on hold pending the end of the dispute.

"It is unfortunate the dispute means the changes we have planned for the city to transform waste services are delayed for now," he said.

John Cotton said the council is committed to finding a resolution

Mrs Khan, a volunteer at the Small Heath Community Forum, told BBC West Midlands that her area of Small Heath has had no bin collections for six weeks.

"There are mounds and mounds of rubbish everywhere, street corners, road junctions, every side street you can think of.

"There are plenty of rats to go around, foxes, it is not surprising because this level of rubbish inevitably will attract such creatures.

"The smell is evident because the weather has become warmer, it is not pleasant at all.

"People just want to see this rubbish cleared".

Many people have taken it upon themselves to take rubbish to the tips, when they can get a slot

Edgbaston MP Preet Gill told the House of Commons on Monday that she welcomed the major incident declaration after one of her constituents said they had been bitten by a rat.

Meanwhile, striking bin workers were out on the picket line outside the depot in Tyseley on Tuesday.

Referring to the major incident, Del, who would only give his first name, told BBC Midlands Today: "It's made us more determined to stay out on the line."

David Callaghan, another worker on the picket line, said he was not sure what the major incident was supposed to achieve.

"I don't think even the council knows what the special measures actually mean," he added.

Birmingham City Council said some strikers on the picket lines at various depots across the region are walking in front of bin lorries, delaying the vehicles that are not on strike - but the unions have said that the actions are a "legitimate form of protest".

Industrial action was launched over a pay dispute between the council and refuse workers amid the council's plans to scrap the Waste Recycling and Collection Officer (WRCO) role, described by Unite as "safety-critical".

Pay and conditions for refuse workers had already been cut before the current dispute, including £1,000 in shift pay, while around 150 workers are directly impacted with pay cuts of up to £8,000 by the removal of the WRCO role, which also ends fair pay progression for hundreds of others, Unite said.

"The council could end this dispute tomorrow by agreeing to pay a decent rate of pay," Unite's national officer Onay Kasab has said previously.

But the council's political leadership has insisted that a "fair and reasonable offer" has been made.

"Not a single worker needs to lose a penny," said Majid Mahmood, councillor for the Bromford and Hodge Hill ward.

"Every worker has been offered the same grade and the same pay within the street scene division of the city council."

The council added its routes and working practices were fully risk assessed and health and safety was "everyone's responsibility".