Labour has 'no plan' to fix Birmingham debt amid major bin strike
A major union has accused the government of having "no plan" to fix debts blighting English councils.
Labour has "no plan" to fix the debts blighting English councils, a trade union delegate has said, adding that Birmingham's financial worries were "not the fault" of striking bin workers.
Monica Taylor, from Unite the Union, criticised Labour from the lectern at its conference in Liverpool.
"Like many here, I have seen first-hand the impact and legacy of years of Tory cuts and mismanagement," she said.
"Local government funding has been stripped to the bone - hundreds of thousands of jobs lost, pay slashed, libraries closed, youth services gutted, social care on its knees."
Ms Taylor, backing a conference motion on public sector workers which her union moved, added that "15 months after Labour took power, there is still no plan to fix this mess".
Several town halls have declared effective bankruptcy in recent years, including Birmingham City Council in 2023, which filed a Section 114 notice over unequal pay claims.
Unite members who collect waste and recycling for the authority walked out in March this year, amid fears they face pay cuts of £8,000 a year.
This figure is incorrect, according to Birmingham City Council, but the authority has conceded that 17 people could lose the maximum amount, which is over £6,000. They would have pay protection for six months.
"Let me be clear, this crisis is not the fault of council workers, care staff, librarians, housing officers, youth workers, school support staff or bin workers," Ms Taylor said.
"Let's be clear again, Birmingham bin workers and other council workers should not be paying for the council debt."
Ms Taylor added that lower pay "will mean their homes, their mortgages, their rent cannot be paid".
To a cry of "shame", Ms Taylor said: "Can you believe that a Labour council backed by a Labour Government is using Thatcher's anti-union laws, spending millions on injunctions and agency labour to break a lawful strike?"