Missed collections in Brighton as Cityclean lorries sabotaged

The wires on two Cityclean lorries were tampered with to stop them working, preventing them from carrying out collections.

Brighton and Hove City Council leader Bella Sankey described the vandalism as “unlawful and scandalous”.

The council said vehicle defects have “increased dramatically” since some Cityclean staff lost their jobs last October. This came amid a barrister's independent report detailing the “toxic” culture at the Hollingdean depot.

A cut wire on a Cityclean lorry (Image: BHCC)

Bella Sankey said: "We know the vast majority of Cityclean staff are extremely hard working and want to do an excellent job for our residents and the city.

"However, the sabotage and resulting disruption of recent weeks shows there are a small minority who are disrupting our waste and recycling service. Under my leadership, we will not be held to ransom by these people.

“The cutting of lorry wires is unlawful and scandalous and is extremely dangerous to our staff.

“It's also criminal activity which has been reported and is being investigated by Sussex Police."

Wiring cut deliberately on another lorry (Image: BHCC)

After the independent report last year, the refuse workers' union GMB Sussex branch tweeted: “Chaos set to hit the city of Brighton. The sleeping giant has awoken, watch this Twitter feed for further information.”

This post was subsequently deleted and the GMB made a statement disowning the tweet and saying it would investigate it. The results of that investigation have not yet been published.

Councillor Sankey added: “Ensuring we have a waste and recycling service that keeps our city clean and tidy is an absolute priority for myself and the leadership of the council.

“We’re taking the necessary steps to find out who is responsible for this illegal sabotage and they will face the most serious disciplinary action.”

There have been dozens of roads around the city left with overflowing bins and rubbish strewn across the streets following the missed collections.

Donna Chisholm, the council’s executive director for economy, environment and culture, said in a letter to staff: “I also know the vast majority of you take pride in your work and set out every day to provide a great service to our residents and businesses.

The council said two lorries having wires cut led to missed collections in the city (Image: Andrew Gardner/The Argus)

“Sadly, I’m also writing to everyone regarding the recent disruption to services due to an increase in the number of vehicle defects.

“As you may know, there’s been deliberate damage to two vehicles where wires have been cut. This is unacceptable.

“I know you’ll be concerned because deliberate damage can be very dangerous and certainly causes disruption to your rounds.

“I want to reassure you, we take deliberate vehicle damage extremely seriously. 

“We’re reviewing our CCTV and are determined find out who is carrying out this criminal damage. Once identified they’ll face the most serious disciplinary action.

“The huge amount of dropped work and missed collections has led to residents and customers feeling the service we’re now providing is poor, which is not a good reflection on the hard work that staff carry out on a daily basis.”

The council said Cityclean are beginning to clear the backlog of missed collections – for both residential and communal bins - and are trying to ensure extra waste around the latter is cleared as soon as possible.

The firm is trying to recruit ten new drivers and refuse workers to cope with demand. 

Labour MP for Hove Peter Kyle told The Argus: “The council have begun the process of rooting out the problems at Cityclean and I couldn’t be prouder of the progress made.

"There now needs to be a final push to get the organisation fit for purpose and for residents to get the service they deserve and have been asking for.”