The Bin Dispute in Brighton & Hove began in earnest on the 14th June with a seven day walkout. This followed many weeks of failed attempts to resolve the issues that lie behind the strike. Behind this lies many years of conflict between the Council and the workers that deal with our household refuse. The strike was suspended on 21st June and according to my calculations it is due to restart on Friday 19th July unless the root causes have already been addressed. If they have I am delighted, but I haven’t heard and Friday is now only a few days away.

Any resolution will depend on agreement being found between the City Council in terms of both the Officers and also the Green Party Political leadership. However the words and actions of a number of other people will help with the resolution. Any settlement by the Council needs to be supported (assuming it is fair and cost effective) by the other political parties who are active within the Council. Equally it is vital that the Councillors and MPs who have refuse workers in their constituencies ensure that their voices and needs are understood, particularly if there is an impasse between the two sides in this dispute. It is also important that the actions of the executive members of our council are challenged and tested by the rest of the Council and the best place for this to be carried out is during a Full Council Meeting. All members of the public are entitled to see this for themselves and there should be an opportunity for some people to speak. That is the case for all residents of the city and includes our MPs.

One of my abiding frustrations in my limited experience of Brighton & Hove City Council Meetings is the tendency for some Councillors to focus on to national political issues on which the have no influence, almost as a diversion from the real local issues at hand. In this way meetings take longer than is needed and this along with the political posturing seems unlikely to attract people into this sphere of local politics.  However this is not a matter that is limited to the City Council. In Westminster Politics there is plenty of evidence of time wasting and posturing. Take this example from one of our local MPs, it is an account of an exchange between Simon Kirby and Andrew Lansley on the subject of our bin dispute from the 20th June:

Simon Kirby (Brighton, Kemptown) (Con): Brighton and Hove are awash with uncollected rubbish and litter because of the inability of the Green council and the unions to reach agreement. Tourism, public health and residents are all being put at risk. May we please have a debate on this important issue?

Mr Lansley: My hon. Friend makes a good point. The irony will not be lost on his constituents that, although they have a Green council, the quality of their environment is being undermined by these actions. I know that my hon. Friend is doing everything he can to ensure that the issues are resolved, but it is important that the trade unions do not put the interests of the public at risk through the steps they are taking, and that the council steps up to its responsibilities. If he can bring the two together, I am sure that his constituents will be grateful to him.

As we approach the 19th July and all local residents wait with bated breath to see whether the bins will be emptied, it remains to be seen if Simon lived up to the expectations of the leader of the house. What has he done to help bring both sides together and end the dispute?. What we can all be sure about is that Parliament did not debate our bin dispute, and Simon knew they would not. We need a political system that is fit for purpose, and people like Simon and Andrew Lansley need to take a lead and use the mechanisms they have at their disposal to good effect. Not waste the Parliamentary time that you and I pay for to discuss matters that they cannot influence.