Council fails in bid to end bin strike with High Court injunction

Warrington Borough Council has failed in a bid to end the ongoing bin strike with an interim High Court injunction.

On Tuesday 28 November, the council’s case was heard at the High Court in London, regarding the continued bin strikes in Warrington.

The presiding judge delayed judgement until today, Friday and decided against granting an interim injunction to stop the industrial action which is currently set to last until December 24.

A council spokesperson said: “We made the case to grant an interim injunction to immediately stop the industrial action.
“We can confirm, with deep regret, that this interim injunction has not been granted.
“This ruling may lead to significant future implications for all councils who continue to abide by the national pay agreements for local government.
“It was our belief that we had a strong case and good prospect of a positive outcome. While this judgement deems the current strike action by Unite to be lawful, we continue to be hugely disappointed by the impact that their course of action is causing for our town. We continue to call on Unite and their members to end the strike and to return to work.
“We know that this ruling is not an acceptable outcome for our residents, whose bins desperately need emptying.
“We continue to consider legal options including whether to appeal the court decision. We also have a number of contingency plans we now intend to immediately take forward. We will offer a further update as soon as possible.”

It’s understood the court action cost circa £50,000.

A full copy of the High Court ruling can be read by CLICKING HERE

Bin strike High Court action adjourned as judge unable to reach conclusion