THE BBC has been slammed for shielding Labour after failing to mention the party in charge over the Birmingham bin crisis.
BBC Radio 4 Today interviewed the leader of cash-strapped Birmingham City Council about the city being – but left out that it is a Labour-run authority.
The broadcaster neglected to mention during the three-hour programme when it questioned John Cotton.
Shadow culture secretary Stuart Andrew told The Telegraph: “This looks like yet another case of the BBC shielding the Labour Party from criticism.
“Thanks to Labour’s disastrous management of Birmingham and their refusal to stand up to their union paymasters, residents are being plagued withreportedly weighing more than the Eiffel Tower.“
Mr Cotton was introduced as the leader of Birmingham city council on BBC Radio 4 Today and was quizzed as to whether he accepted any responsibility for the crisis.
Instead, he said he was brought in to address “historic problems” with the bankrupt council and its budget.
The local authority declared itself bankrupt in September 2023 and needed to make £300million in savings.
It comes after, with union leaders accusing the council of lying about pay.
Unite said that the have not been backed up by written deals.
It said Cotton's plan would lead to “massive, unacceptable pay cuts of £8,000 a year” for some drivers.
Cotton said that had been collected this month.
He insisted normal bin rounds would only resume once the strike is over.
However, he said: “Over the course of this week, residents should see their bins emptied on the day they expect.”
A Unite spokesman said: “The council refused to put in writing what John Cotton and his team have been saying in public.
“We believe they are telling untruths to the public to infer the offer given is better than it really is.
“They need to come clean.”;
It recently emerged that just holding the West Midlands city to ransom.
Operations chief Craig Cooper said around 130 of 170 waste recycling collection officers have accepted redundancy or to re-train as drivers.
He added: “There are about 40 that haven’t, and I urge those 40 to look again.”
A BBC spokeswoman said: “The Today programme has covered this dispute from all sides in great detail over recent days, including interviews with representatives from the union andBirminghamCity Council, and criticisms from local residents.
“This morning’s programme featured a robust interview with the Council leader, which questioned him about his responsibility and sought to get answers on the likelihood of a resolution with the union.”
