Litter pickers say rubbish in Birmingham park is piling up
Litter pickers who organised a community clear up at park in Birmingham said the rubbish piling up is higher than ever. Sadia Khan, chair of Friends of Spark Green Park, told the BBC that volunteers have been collecting almost quadruple the amount of litter amid the current bin strike in the city. She said: "We usually have three bags of litter over a two hour litter picking session, and now it's 10 to 12 bags."The group, who also took part in an annual post-Eid litter pick on Tuesday, said the park is baring the brunt of commercial and residential waste piling up on the streets due to the strike.
The prime minister has condemned the all-out bin strike in Birmingham as "completely unacceptable".Sir Keir Starmer told the Commons during Prime Minister's Questions that he also supported the city council's decision to declare a major incident.The Liberal Democrat group on the city council have called for the resignation of Chief Constable Craig Guilford if more resources aren't found to police it. But Mr Guilford told BBC Radio WM that West Midlands Police are policing the bin strikes correctly. He told listeners: "Our job is to facilitate people's rights to lawfully and peacefully protest, but also to facilitate other people's rights who may want to go to work."It is important we make sure we maintain that middle ground."We have to balance people's competing rights, it is very important we do that, and are seen to do that, by the public."We all hope, and I do as Chief Constable, that this dispute is brought to a swift conclusion."There is an estimated 17,000 tonnes of uncollected rubbish in Birmingham since the all out strike began, which is entering its fourth week. Ms Khan said the group have found fly-tipping waste, as well as builder's waste in the park.Ms Khan said: "Its so hard for our littler pickers to remove rubble and brick. It is getting a lot more of a nuisance. There's rats you can see in broad daylight."We have a lot of businesses in the Balti Triangle that are food commercial businesses and it's a worry for them, as well as public health and our own mental health seeing litter daily."It's depressing, it shouldn't be the norm. Children shouldn't have to wade through it on their way to school."
Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Argus
31 minutes ago
- South Wales Argus
BBC art dealer from Bargain Hunt jailed for terror offence
The 53-year-old admitted to eight counts of failing to disclose during business under the Terrorism Act 2000. Judge Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said Ojiri was aware that he had sold art to Nazem Ahmad, who had been sanctioned in 2019 by the US authorities. Bargain Hunts star Oghenochuko Ojiri jailed for selling art to suspected Hezbollah financier Hezbollah is considered a terrorist organisation in the UK (Image: Ben Whitley/PA) She stated: "These offences are so severe that only a custodial sentence can be justified." According to the BBC, the judge added: "You knew about Ahmad's suspected involvement in financing terrorism and the way the art market can be exploited by people like him. "Your hard work, talent and charisma has brought you a great deal of success... You knew you should not have been dealing with that man." She added that there was no evidence that Ojiri supported any form of extremism but that his conduct undermined he detection of terrorist financing. Representing the BBC Bargain Hunt star, Gavin Irwin said that the art expert's "humiliation is complete," adding that the star has lost "his good name" and the "work he loves." Mr Irwin added: "He'd like to apologise for undermining trust" in the art market. Discussing the case, Cdr Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command, said: "Raising money for terrorism is a core part of how terrorist groups are then able to cause harm around the world." Bethan David, head of the CPS Counter Terrorism Division, said Ojiri's motivation appeared "to be financial, along with a broader desire to boost his gallery's reputation within the art market by dealing with such a well-known collector." He added: "This prosecution is believed to be the first of its kind, and the CPS will not hesitate to bring criminal charges against individuals who flout the law in this way." What is Hezbollah and why is it considered a terrorist group? According to the House of Lords Library, Hezbollah is an armed Shiite militia group that is backed by Iran, which largely operates in Lebanon. Giving the UK Government's reasoning for classifying it as a terrorist group in 2024, it added: "It has been proscribed in its entirety by the UK as a terrorist organisation since 2019. "The current conflict between Hezbollah and Israel continues. Hezbollah has fired rockets at Israeli territory whilst Israel has launched retaliatory airstrikes—including that which saw the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah." It concluded by saying: "The UK has called for an immediate ceasefire to provide space for a diplomatic settlement."
The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
BBC art dealer from Bargain Hunt jailed for terror offence
Judge Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said Ojiri was aware that he had sold art to Nazem Ahmad, who had been sanctioned in 2019 by the US authorities. Bargain Hunts star Oghenochuko Ojiri jailed for selling art to suspected Hezbollah financier Hezbollah is considered a terrorist organisation in the UK (Image: Ben Whitley/PA) She stated: "These offences are so severe that only a custodial sentence can be justified." According to the BBC, the judge added: "You knew about Ahmad's suspected involvement in financing terrorism and the way the art market can be exploited by people like him. "Your hard work, talent and charisma has brought you a great deal of success... You knew you should not have been dealing with that man." She added that there was no evidence that Ojiri supported any form of extremism but that his conduct undermined he detection of terrorist financing. Representing the BBC Bargain Hunt star, Gavin Irwin said that the art expert's "humiliation is complete," adding that the star has lost "his good name" and the "work he loves." Mr Irwin added: "He'd like to apologise for undermining trust" in the art market. Discussing the case, Cdr Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command, said: "Raising money for terrorism is a core part of how terrorist groups are then able to cause harm around the world." Bethan David, head of the CPS Counter Terrorism Division, said Ojiri's motivation appeared "to be financial, along with a broader desire to boost his gallery's reputation within the art market by dealing with such a well-known collector." He added: "This prosecution is believed to be the first of its kind, and the CPS will not hesitate to bring criminal charges against individuals who flout the law in this way." What is Hezbollah and why is it considered a terrorist group? According to the House of Lords Library, Hezbollah is an armed Shiite militia group that is backed by Iran, which largely operates in Lebanon. Giving the UK Government's reasoning for classifying it as a terrorist group in 2024, it added: "It has been proscribed in its entirety by the UK as a terrorist organisation since 2019. "The current conflict between Hezbollah and Israel continues. Hezbollah has fired rockets at Israeli territory whilst Israel has launched retaliatory airstrikes—including that which saw the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah." It concluded by saying: "The UK has called for an immediate ceasefire to provide space for a diplomatic settlement."
Rhyl Journal
an hour ago
- Rhyl Journal
Kemi Badenoch refuses to kick Liz Truss out of Conservative Party
The Tory leader suggested such a move would be 'neither here nor there' for voters' perception of the party. In a speech on Thursday, shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride sought to distance the Conservatives from Ms Truss's mini-budget, saying the party needed to show 'contrition' to restore its economic credibility. In a furious response, Ms Truss accused Sir Mel of having 'kowtowed to the failed Treasury orthodoxy' and being 'set on undermining my plan for growth'. Asked by the BBC on Friday whether she would consider throwing former prime minister Ms Truss out of the Conservatives in a symbolic break with her short-lived, turbulent time in No 10, Mrs Badenoch replied: 'Is she still in the party?' Ms Truss, the former Conservative MP for South West Norfolk, is understood to be a Tory party member still. Speaking to the BBC, Mrs Badenoch said: 'What is really important is what Mel was saying yesterday. What he was saying was that the mini-budget did not balance. It wasn't tax cuts, it was the … £150 billion of spending increases on energy bills that did not make sense.' Pressed whether she believed the mini-budget had damaged the Conservative brand, Mrs Badenoch said: 'Well, look at what happened, people didn't understand why we had done that, and so our reputation for economic competence was damaged.' When asked again why she would not consider kicking Ms Truss out of the party, the Tory leader said: 'It is not about any particular individual. I don't want to be commenting on previous prime ministers. 'They've had their time. What am I going to do now? Removing people from a political party is neither here nor there in terms of what it is your viewers want to see.' After insisting Ms Truss was not in Parliament anymore, Mrs Badenoch said her party needed to 'focus on how we're going to get this country back on track'. 'What we have right now is a Labour Government, it's Keir Starmer. We need to stop talking about several prime ministers ago and talk about the Prime Minister we've got now and what he's doing to the country,' the Tory leader said. Ms Truss this week appeared in a video to promote the Irish whiskey brand of bare-knuckle fighter Dougie Joyce, who was once jailed for attacking a 78-year-old man in a pub in 2022.
