Angela Rayner has been accused of trying to “dupe the British public” after blaming the Tories for Birmingham’s rotting rubbish crisis — despite Labour running the council there since 2012.
The Deputy Prime Minister claimed Conservative cuts were to blame for the bin chaos in Britain’s second city, where mounds of waste and giant rats “as big as cats” have turned streets into stink zones.
Speaking on BBC Radio 2, Ms Rayner insisted: “Under the previous government, Birmingham council went bust and issued a 114 notice.” She added: “We’ve given Birmingham extra cash… after 14 years of disaster.”
But critics say the Labour frontbencher is rewriting history — as experts have already pointed the finger at Labour’s own failings. A bombshell report by the University of Sheffield last year revealed that the council’s effective bankruptcy wasn’t down to Tory austerity — but Labour’s botched rollout of a disastrous £80million IT system.
The local authority, under Labour control for over a decade (since 2012), declared itself effectively bankrupt in September 2023, saddled with a £760million equal pay bill and the IT overspend.
Now a bin strike, sparked by the council axing key waste roles, has left parts of the city swimming in filth since March 11. Residents have reported vermin running riot while council bosses scramble to contain the mess.
Meanwhile, Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick highlighted the chaos with a snap of Chelworth Road, where one side under Birmingham’s Labour-run council is drowning in bin bags — while the other, run by Bromsgrove’s Tory district council, remains spotless.
He posted: “Spot the side of the street run by the Labour council in Birmingham versus Conservative-run Bromsgrove. Night and day.”
Despite the mounting rubbish and rising fury, there’s still no end in sight to the strike.
Elsewhere in the same interview, Ms Rayner stumbled over questions on energy bills — and couldn’t say when prices would actually come down under Labour’s green plans.
Asked about Ed Miliband’s net zero push, she said: “[We’ve] taken decisions that mean, in the long term, energy prices will go down.”
But pressed on exactly when, she dodged the question: “Well, that’s because we’re in challenging terms. But you know…”
Even when asked if bills would be cheaper in the next 10 years, she avoided a straight answer.
And in a rare moment of candour, Ms Rayner sympathised with a lifelong Labour voter who said the current government had done more damage than the Tories ever had.
“I recognise Scott’s frustration,” she admitted.
All this comes as millions wake up to April agony — with soaring bills and tax hikes hitting households and firms hard.
Council tax, road tax, stamp duty and utility bills have all shot up. Meanwhile, Rachel Reeves’s National Insurance raid on employers kicks in on April 6.
Since Labour took office, a staggering 210,000 businesses have shut down. And over 10,000 millionaires — plus 12 billionaires — have packed their bags and fled the UK.
From bins to bills, Birmingham’s crisis shows no sign of clearing up — and Rayner’s finger-pointing isn’t fooling anyone.
By Portia Rose.
