Craig Cooper defended the city council’s position throughout the strike dispute, but has now moved to Brisbane
Craig Cooper played a key role in Birmingham City Council’s position on the bin strikes.
A key player in Birmingham’s bins strike crisis has moved to Australia – leaving the piles of stinking rubbish behind him.
Craig Cooper, who staunchly defended Birmingham City Council’s stance during the strike conflict, has moved 10,000 miles away to Brisbane after quitting earlier this year.
His move to Queensland will see him based in one of the “cleanest, greenest and most sustainable cities in Australia”, which was awarded a UN accolade in 2023. Mr Cooper, 58, announced his relocation on LinkedIn, expressing his anticipation “with one eye on Brisbane 2032”, seemingly alluding to the Olympic Games.
READ MORE: ‘Woman’ dies in railway line incident which shut roads and rail route
He denied he was already working on Games preparation.
Community activist Paul Smith, 46, from Northfield, suggested the move mirrored the council’s attitude towards residents who had “given up hope” after enduring months of squalor.
He said: “I might join him. It shows the attitude towards residents. People feel like dead men and women walking. I don’t know what the answer is but people are really suffering.
“I’ve been out and about and I’ve seen the rats. There are piles of rubbish everywhere. The weather is getting warmer and it stinks. Contractors are coming to clear things. The council is bankrupt – are they going to have a huge bill at the end of all this?”.
Onay Kasab, Unite national lead officer, said: “Craig Cooper may have run away to one of the cleanest cities on earth but the stink from his disgraceful championing of brutal pay cuts of up to £8,000 for hundreds of bin workers is still following him around.”
Craig Cooper has moved to Brisbane.(Image: (Image: Getty))
Mr Cooper, who held the position of Strategic Director of City Operations at Birmingham City Council during a tumultuous period for waste services, told the Mirror: “It’s true I have emigrated to Australia but at this point I won’t be stating who I’m working for.
“You’d be wrong to state that I’m actually at present working to deliver Brisbane 2032. It’s also worth noting that the move to Australia was planned some time ago and isn’t something that happened recently.”
This week deputy prime minister Angela Rayner and all Birmingham Labour councillors who are Unite members – including leader John Cotton – faced suspension from the union over the bin strike crisis. The union confirmed the action while announcing a review of its ties with the Labour party.
The union backed this decision at a Brighton conference on Friday, alleging the Labour heavyweight had supported a council that had “peddled lies”.
Throughout his tenure in Birmingham, Mr Cooper adopted a firm stance with refuse workers, stamping out “task and finish” practices within the waste service that had sparked equal pay claims.
The “task and finish” system was brought in as an emergency protocol during Covid across the city’s four bin depots to shield crews from contracting the virus, allowing them to head home once their routes were finished.
However, the arrangement has continued since then, reportedly with the council’s awareness. Mr Cooper also spearheaded a comprehensive review of waste and street cleaning services, resulting in the decision to scrap the contentious Waste Recycling and Collection Officer position that lies at the heart of the current strike action.
In discussions regarding the industrial action, he slammed Unite for “holding the city to ransom” over the destiny of a handful of employees, despite what he termed a “fair and reasonable” proposal.
He revealed his plans to relocate to Australia via LinkedIn, stating he was “looking forward, with one eye on Brisbane 2032”, and penned: “After an extraordinary few years, it’s time to say goodbye to Birmingham – a city that has challenged me, inspired me, and given me so much.
“As the executive director city operations, I’ve had the privilege of leading through a time of intense change and real momentum. From complex day-to-day operations, significant large scale capital developments to playing a key leadership role for landmark moments like the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, I’ve witnessed the very best of this city’s resilience, creativity, and community spirit.
“One of my greatest professional joys has been building a high-performing leadership team – passionate, skilled, and committed – who are now driving forward an ambitious agenda of delivery transformation, with major developments and more global sporting events on the horizon.”
His fresh start Down Under emerged days after discussions to settle Birmingham’s refuse strike collapsed entirely, leaving certain bin lorry operators facing potential forced redundancy. Mediation service Acas has been facilitating talks since May, but the council has now declared the authority is “walking away”.
Coun Cotton said the council had “reached the absolute limit” in its negotiations with the union. Unite’s general secretary, Sharon Graham, reiterated previous allegations that the council had employed a “fire and rehire” tactic.
In response to queries about Mr Cooper’s new position in Australia, a representative for Birmingham City Council confirmed: “Richard Brookes is the interim replacement.”