Date: 7 July 2025
By: Us, the People of Birmingham
Imagine stepping outside and seeing rats—bold, bloated, fearless—tearing into torn bin bags on the pavement. The stench of rot so thick it catches in our throats. Now picture a month from now: those rats are larger, nesting under our floorboards, creeping into our gardens, spreading disease.
This is not some distant nightmare. This is Birmingham today.
For six months, our city has been suffocating under more than 17,000 tonnes of uncollected waste. Since the bin strike escalated on 11 March, our streets have turned into breeding grounds for pests and sickness. We pay our council tax for clean, safe neighbourhoods, yet Birmingham City Council leaves us with filth and fear.
We have rights. We have power. It’s time we face how serious this is and decide—together—how we fight back. What will we do to save our city?
Our City Is Rotting
The facts are impossible to ignore. Over 17,000 tonnes of waste lies uncollected. Our recycling rate is a mere 22.9%, one of the lowest in the country. Rubbish piles block pavements, crawl with maggots and leave our buses and parks reeking of neglect. Pest workers call the smell “unbelievable,” as rats—some the size of cats—feast in broad daylight.
Families keep children indoors to avoid contaminated streets. Shop owners sweep away droppings before opening each morning. We’re spending our own money to keep rats from destroying gardens and homes, while our council’s so-called “major incident” response has changed little.
This is not just an inconvenience. It is a health crisis.
Parliament has been warned of diseases spread by rats—leptospirosis, hantavirus, salmonella—transmitted through bites, scratches, or contact with contaminated surfaces. They strike hardest at our children, the elderly, and those already vulnerable.
Our Rights Are Being Denied
We pay hundreds in council tax each year for basic services like waste collection. Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, our council is legally required to collect household waste and recycling regularly. Six months of failure isn’t just mismanagement—it’s unlawful.
We have the right to:
- Clean streets: safe, sanitary neighbourhoods free from piles of waste and pests.
- Health protection: not to be exposed to serious disease risks.
- Accountability: to know why our taxes aren’t delivering what we’re legally owed.
Yet our council stalls. They delay fair negotiations with the union representing our bin workers—who are simply asking for a living wage. These workers want to clean our streets. It’s council leadership that’s failing to sort this crisis. Meanwhile, those who run our city—Labour councillors, a Labour government, and a silent Conservative opposition—have left us breathing in decay.
The Deeper Threat
Rats and rubbish are bad enough. But the real danger is what happens if we accept this.
When we start seeing filth as ordinary, we lower our expectations—of our leaders, of our city, of ourselves. That’s how decline becomes permanent. History is littered with examples: Victorian cholera outbreaks that began with ignored refuse, modern cities whose waste crises became gateways to crime, falling property values, lost jobs and lost hope.
If we stay silent, we teach our children that neglect is normal. We risk letting Birmingham slide into long-term decay, until one day we barely recognise the place we once proudly called home.
We Must Act—Together, Now
We are not powerless. Our fear and anger can fuel change—if we stand side by side.
Let’s say this clearly: if those running our city cannot handle something as basic as keeping our streets clean and protecting us from disease, perhaps they should step aside.
If Birmingham—Europe’s largest local authority—has become too unwieldy for councillors to manage, maybe it’s time to rethink the system. Why not return to smaller, more local councils, like our country once had, close enough to see every street and hear every resident?
This city does not belong to politicians. It belongs to all of us. If it takes restructuring how Birmingham governs itself just to secure clean streets and public health, then we should be prepared to demand exactly that.
What Can We Do?
Here are some starting points, but we need all of our ideas:
- Flood Councillor John Cotton’s inbox or contact our own local councillors (find them at www.birmingham.gov.uk/councillors) and demand urgent action.
- Share photos of uncollected bins, rats, and ruined gardens with #CleanBirminghamNow. Tag @BhamCityCouncil, local MPs, and journalists.
- Support our bin workers’ push for fair pay so they can end the strike and get back to keeping our streets clean.
- Debate bolder solutions—like breaking Birmingham into smaller, more accountable councils.
But above all, we need your voice. Should we start a city-wide petition? Organise local clean-ups to protect our families until the council acts? Write collectively to Parliament? Comment, DM, or text us with your thoughts. Together, we can build a plan no politician can ignore.
Let’s Not Be the Generation That Let Birmingham Rot
We cannot wait for a child in A&E with a rat-borne infection or for Birmingham to become a national disgrace.
We have rights. We have each other. Let’s make sure that when our children ask why the rats didn’t take over, we can say it’s because we stood up—together—and stopped it.
#CleanBirminghamNow
@CleanBhamNow on X, or comment here: https://wp.me/p31jLP-q9
Short social media snippets for sharing
Please do and copy on your social media and share it as much as you can.
Twitter (X):
“Rats are taking over Birmingham. 17,000 tonnes of rubbish. Diseases on our doorsteps. If the council can’t fix it, maybe they should step aside for smaller councils that can. Read what we can do together: https://wp.me/p31jLP-q9. #CleanBirminghamNow @BhamCityCouncil”
Facebook:
“Birmingham’s drowning under 17,000 tonnes of waste and rats. We pay council tax for clean streets—by law we’re owed them! If the council can’t cope, maybe it’s time for smaller councils that can. Read our blog to learn your rights and share YOUR ideas: https://wp.me/p31jLP-q9. Comment below—what should we do? #CleanBirminghamNow”
WhatsApp:
“Birmingham’s rotting under rubbish & rats. The council’s breaking the law—by rights we’re owed clean streets. If they can’t cope, maybe it’s time for smaller councils that can. Read our blog: https://wp.me/p31jLP-q9. What can we do? Share your ideas & pass this on! #CleanBirminghamNow”
Tell us in the comments — what brilliant ideas do you have to fix this crisis? Should we start a petition, push for smaller local councils, organise neighbourhood clean-ups, or try something none of us has thought of yet?
We want your voice. Together, our ideas can build a plan that no leader can ignore.
Drop your thoughts below and let’s show Birmingham belongs to all of us.
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