Birmingham Council faces ‘financial penalty’ if it misses environmental deadline thanks to bins strike

The council’s waste service transformation, which will see collections of household rubbish become fortnightly, was initially set to be introduced in phases from April this year.

Weekly food waste collections and a second recycling bin specifically for recycling paper and cardboard were also planned to be brought in earlier this year as part of the project.

But these changes were delayed due to the impact of the bins strike, which disrupted collections and left huge piles of rubbish in Birmingham's streets during its height.

The council confirmed this week that the waste transformation is now set to start rolling out in June 2026 – regardless of whether the strike is still happening at this point or not.

However, a Government target requires all local authorities to introduce a free, weekly food waste collection for households by March 31 next year.

The rollout of the waste transformation not happening until June means the council would miss this deadline.

In a recently-published report, the council said officers are in discussion with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to see whether an exemption for the food waste deadline is possible.

“Whilst it may be possible to obtain an exemption from Defra to delay the introduction of food waste, this has not been provided to date,” it said.

“A verbal update will be given by officers at the meeting [next Tuesday] if any further responses are received after the publication of this report.”

The report continues: “It is important to note that the council understands the position from Defra with regards to this deadline.

“However, any decision that is taken would need to be mindful of the industrial relations, customer, and service risks that the council faces at this time.”

The council said there is a “financial risk” associated with any delays to implementation, which may involve the Government imposing a “financial penalty” for failing to meet the food waste deadline.

“At this stage it is unknown as to what this financial quantum may be as this is yet to be shared with local authorities,” it added.

Amid the possibility of a financial penalty, a spokesperson for the city council confirmed it had been in discussion with Defra on this “like many other councils”.

“But the purpose of the cabinet paper is to ensure we can comply with the intention of the legislation,” they said.

Council leader John Cotton argued at a meeting this week that Birmingham was not the only local authority in this position and added it continues to engage with Defra to “find a way forward”.

The bins strike dispute between the council and Unite the union was initially sparked by the loss of the Waste Recycling and Collection Officer role.

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