BACKBENCH Labour councillors have called for a review of the authority’s contract with street cleaning company Kier after continued poor performance.

Members say they are still being deluged with complaints from residents about rubbish and decided at a meeting last night to put pressure on cabinet to act.

Cllr Asim Mahmood, of Markhouse ward, said: “We are a 4 star council but we are not providing a 4 star service when it comes to keeping our streets clean.

"Residents and Labour councillors are not satisfied that our streets are improving anywhere near fast enough.

“Clearly there are problems with Kier’s contract and these need to be sorted out. We need to make sure Kier are doing the job they are being paid for so we are calling on the Cabinet to do a full review and make sure Kier meet the standards we expect from them.”

  The group want an immediate review to examine Kier’s performance on cleaning gutters and leaves, removing fly-tipping and bags left by street cleaners, as well as weekend working hours.

Cllr Faiz Yunis said, “With autumn fast approaching, residents rightly expect their councillors to sort this mess out before they face another year where they literally cannot walk down their road because of the uncollected leaves piled up on the pavement.  

"First we need to be making absolutely sure that Kier are doing all that we are paying them for, and if not, penalising them where it hurts, in the pocket. Second, if we think something will improve the cleanliness of our streets that is not included in the contract, we need to ensure the investment is provided that allows for this to happen.” 

Kier was served with 300 notices to improve by the council in the 12 months up to June, with 186 fines issued when these were ignored.

Council leader Chris Robbins has says Kier’s performance must improve, admitting streets in other boroughs are cleaner due to better investment.