Finally – Angela Rayner has got off her backside and done the job she’s being paid to do as housing and communities minister - she’s sent in the army to tackle Birmingham’s bin crisis.
And that sounds good doesn’t it – like she’s taking control?
The city of Birmingham is still struggling to control the bin strikes
PA
Only it isn’t because she hasn’t actually sent in the army - as in soldiers on bin trucks to shift the rubbish.
What she’s done to make it look like she’s being pro-active in trying to sort out the strike and saying: “Hey look people I really AM doing something – but not too much because I don’t want to offend my mates in the Unite union.”
So what has she done? Well she hasn’t sent in big burly soldiers who’d have those rat-infested streets cleaned up in a day. Nope, she’s assigned a few office based military specialists who are giving “logistical and administrative assistance".
What??? How the Hell is “administrative assistance” going to help clear the tens of thousands of tons of rubbish that have spawned super rats on Birmingham’s streets, those same streets pest control experts are now describing as “apocalyptic”.
The people Raynor have sent in are in essence military office workers with “operational planning expertise”. They’re not soldiers who are going to empty the bins and clear stinking bin bags.
But why isn’t that happening? Do people in Birmingham have to die before something concrete gets done?
Is nothing getting done because no-one is allowed to trample on, or offend, the Unite union? Isn’t the health and the safety of Birmingham’s residents a damn sight more important than the finer feelings of the stroppy Unite union? Because it should be!”
The council has already issued a public health warning. The city has been declared a health hazard - what else needs to happen before this Government takes decisive action and clears the rubbish?
Rayner met with Unite union leaders and told them to accept yet another improved offer from the council. They ignored her completely which shows how much clout she has with them.
And this is where we are in Britain today. We have a Government that is beholden to its union paymasters and we have councils which are too.
Meanwhile hard working British citizens who are coughing up ludicrous amounts in council tax every month to help fund these useless, profligate councils, are suffering
We need to stop faffing around with admin officers and get the soldiers in there. To Hell with what the unions think.
This has always been a ludicrous and totally unnecessary strike because its about just 17 workers who have what’s called WRCO roles which are being scrapped because their bankrupt council can no longer afford them.
Only those 17 workers will lose the maximum of £6,000 a year even though Unite claims its more. But they will still have to pay protection for six months in line with council policy.
And it should be pointed out that no other council in the land has this WRCO role so I’m not sure how it can possibly be as vital as Unite says it is or how losing it is going to affect the safety of binmen.
But last week Unite ignored Rayner’s pleas to accept the “improved” deal, from the council while the health secretary, Wes Streeting, said the strike had “escalated way out of hand”.
But of course Unite stuck two fingers up at them both because it just wants to play silly beggars and because it knows with this Labour Government, it will always have the upper hand.
A Government spokesman says: “What we’re doing is building on a range of measures we’ve supported the council on to date – including neighbouring authorities providing additional vehicles and crews and opening household waste centres to Birmingham residents.”
Yes, but nothing is properly shifting the rubbish is it? And the residents of Birmingham have every right to want to know why.
The fact is unless those military personnel being used in Birmingham are driving bin trucks that are going to clear the streets of the 25 tonnes of rat infested rubbish – then they’re as much use as a chocolate fireguard. .
And Yes, I get that bringing in the Army to clear rubbish is shocking and shouldn’t be happening but more importantly it’s a damning indictment of Labour’s total failure to properly run the city of Birmingham.
And when this is over those incompetent idiots who have brought the city to its knees need to be removed. If a council can’t run on a £3bn budget then something is very wrong.
And just where has Birmingham Council’s obscenely paid C.E.O, Joane Roney, been during the chaos? She took over the council last year on an indecent £300,000 a year salary. As were three other so called super execs on similar amounts. Their job was to sort out this badly run, badly managed joke of a council – and they have failed.
What the Hell have those four been doing since this strike started in January? Clearly nothing to justify their obscene salaries.
But what’s happening in Birmingham is what happens when a Labour Government is in power because no-one in Government ever wants to upset their union paymasters or the public service workers who vote for them.
Meanwhile Birmingham’s residents are drowning in a sea of rat infested rubbish – and are paying a very high price in council tax for it.
