Birmingham bin woes and council turmoil at heart of by-election battle

An election was triggered after much-loved councillor Kerry Jenkins, who represented Labour in Moseley, South Birmingham, died in July following a short illness.

It means thousands of residents will be able to vote on who takes the council seat when the by-election is held on October 23.

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Labour will be hoping to retain the seat while facing opposition from the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Green Party, Reform and two independent candidates.

One issue put in the spotlight by many of the candidates is the bin strike, which has dragged on for several months and seen rubbish pile up outside homes.

Striking workers have raised concerns about pay during the industrial action, while the Labour-run council’s leadership has repeatedly insisted a “fair and reasonable” offer had been made.

The political battleground is also being dominated by the council’s financial crisis, which sparked a wave of cuts to services alongside hikes in council tax.

Fears over Reform’s “divisive” politics are also a recurring theme in the by-election, despite the party previously saying it wanted to show it would represent people of all backgrounds and faiths.

With next week’s vote providing a potential signpost of what might happen in next May’s all-out council elections, here’s a look at the candidates and what they stand for.

Aysan Al-Haq, Reform UK

Reform will be looking to win its first council seat in Birmingham with candidate Aysan Al-Haq.

He has accused Labour of an “ongoing attack on motorists” and supports the campaign to stop and remove the divisive LTN street closures and diversions in Moseley and Kings Heath.

“I was rightly brought up to understand and appreciate that roads are for cars and meant danger,” he said.

He is also against the removal of St George’s and Union Jack flags, which have appeared on lampposts across the city in recent weeks.

“When elected, Reform UK will carry out a root and branch review of public spending under our Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) policy to protect against your money being wasted on ridiculous and ideologically woke operations such as this,” he said.

Reform and Aysan Al-Haq have been contacted for a picture of the candidate.

Danny Mazhar, Birmingham Community Independents

Danny Mazhar, from the Birmingham Community Independents, describes himself as a local activist who would “stand up, shout loud, and work hard to tackle issues affecting our lives”.

He has campaigned to end the bin strike, defend workers and get rubbish off the streets, as well as spoken out on Gaza.

“At the moment, we pay an increase of 7.5 per cent council tax […] and we are not getting those public services that we deserve,” he said.

“Look at our streets across all of Birmingham, we’ve got rats doing breakdancing on the streets.

“We got litter lying around everywhere, and at the end of the day, the council has the cheek to tell the bin workers to take a pay cut.

“It’s unfair on the bin workers because they have families to look after, they have their children’s future to think about.”

Danny Mazhar has been contacted for a picture of the candidate.

Philip Mills, Liberal Democrats

The Liberal Democrats in Birmingham will be hoping to gain another seat in the ward of Moseley.

Their candidate, Philip Mills, says he wants to hold the Labour council to account over the financial crisis and the enforcement of pavement parking.

Mr Mills, a finance director for national charity LionHeart, wants to tackle dangerous driving; work with local police to tackle anti-social behaviour and attract investment with the help of community groups.

He has also pledged to work with the Moseley Society to protect the history and character of the area.

“Moseley councillor Izzy Knowles and other Liberal Democrat councillors in Birmingham work hard to serve their communities,” he said.

“Moseley is a special place, with many independent shops, restaurants and cafés, but also a great community, where lots of groups give back, and I want to serve and protect that community from bad council decisions.”

Stephen Scott Pihlaja, Labour Party

Labour will be fighting to keep the Moseley seat, and its candidate is Stephen Pihlaja, described as a “proud immigrant and adopted Brummie”.

The senior lecturer at Aston University has served as chair of governors at a local primary school and been involved in community organising.

He said: “Like many, I am really worried about the intolerant, divisive politics of Reform and others who just want to stir up hate.

“I am determined to bring people together, fight for families, and build an ambitious future for Moseley.

“If elected, I will work with residents and the council to fix the bin service. Let’s end the dispute and bring back regular, reliable recycling.

“I’ll put our kids first by supporting the introduction of breakfast clubs in every primary school in Moseley and expanding free school meals.

“And I’ll campaign for a named police officer for Moseley to keep us safe.”

Nayaz Qazi, Conservatives

Tory candidate Nayaz Qazi has lived in Moseley for decades with his family and is driven by a lifelong passion for vocational skills development.

The party says he embarked on pioneering initiatives with regional colleges in the mid-1990s to foster the growth of skills and job opportunities.

Mr Qazi is standing in particular to ‘end the bins strike, clean up the city, end the pest control charges for rats and help balance the council’s books’.

He also wants to campaign to keep weekly bin collections.

“Only the Local Conservatives have a plan to balance the Council’s books, end the strike, keep weekly bin collections, and clean up Birmingham’s streets,” he said.

He is also campaigning to save family homes from being converted to exempt/supported accommodation and HMOs.

Catherine Jane Turner, Green Party

Cat Turner is the Green Party’s candidate and is standing to challenge cuts and defend local services, such as libraries and youth centres.

She says Birmingham needs more social housing; “well-funded” local services, and more funding for warmer homes to lower people’s energy bills.

“Labour’s destruction of local services is an absolute outrage,” she said.

“We deserve so much better from the council and government. We’ve had enough of cuts and of hate and division.”

She continued: “I’m working with Green Party councillors to challenge cuts to services.

“I want to stand up for our communities and the services we rely on inside as well as outside the council chamber.”

“We need the Labour government to properly fund Birmingham Council and not just make small tweaks,” she added. “The Government has to tax the super-rich to fund services properly.”

Carol Williams, Independent

Carol Williams, an independent candidate, says she will fight for “accountability, fairness, and community-led change”.

She says she left the Labour Party when Keir Starmer took the reins and is frustrated with the direction of the party on a number of issues, including Gaza and cuts to services.

Carol Williams says she will fight for more affordable housing; support expanded youth services; champion a free and greener public transport system; and campaign for “well-funded public services where the bins get collected on time”.

She says she stands in solidarity with the bin workers.

The candidate adds she will work with other independents to build and support a “more cohesive society” and hopes to contribute to building Your Party, the movement backed by Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana.

She said: “Reform offers nothing but fear and scapegoating. We are offering hope, dignity and real solutions.”

Carol Williams has been contacted for a picture of the candidate.