Birmingham bin strikes: Council boss jetted off to sunny Cannes as waste crisis escalated

The boss of a council under fire amid a chaotic situation spent the first week of the crisis on a business trip in , it is reported.

Joanne Roney, managing director of , jetted off to the French Riviera in the same week Since then, bags of rubbish have piled up across the city and concern has grown for the most vulnerable, including those living in sheltered accommodation. crawling through the waste, Labour () MP for Edgbaston said.

But one day after the industrial action had started, Ms Roney, who started her position last September, had a plum speaking role on a panel in Cannes. While it is unclear how long the business trip lasted, critics have said it was "bad judgment" for Ms Roney to be missing in action at such a vital time. The council, which at the end of March , called it a "planned work trip".

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More than 21,000 tons of uncollected rubbish have piled up on the streets of Birmingham since the refuse collectors started the industrial action. , Deputy Prime Minister, on Thursday as she met volunteers clearing rubbish in the city.

Ms Roney's earlier absence there, though, divided opinion. Former Tory leader told the : ‘It shows peculiarly bad judgment. It epitomises the whole way this council has been run, it's a shocking shambles."

However, it was noted Ms Roney, herself a native Brummie, was at the ’s largest real estate conference, an appearance which it is hoped will attract developer interest in Birmingham and the wider West Midlands region. City leader from across the world regularly attend Le Marché international des professionnels de l'immobilier (MIPIM), held each year in Cannes.

A spokesperson for told the Daily Mail: "This was a planned work trip, and all of Joanne’s expenses, including flights and accommodation, have been funded by the private sector."

• With , fears have been raised amid the situation. Infectious disease expert Dr Elizabeth Sherida said: "There’s a risk related to rat exposure, like Weil’s disease, which comes from rat urine. That’s the one thing I would be worried about. Most people don’t know they have been exposed to rat urine. You are at risk if you handle things that rats have been running over and that gets into your system." In response to this, Councillor John Cotton, leader of Birmingham City Council, said: "I would reiterate we have made a fair and reasonable offer to our workers which means none of them have to lose any money and I would urge Unite to reconsider their position."