Tag: John Lambert

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OPINION: John Lambert, Chair of Reform UK Erdington Branch

(L-R) John Lambert and Reform UK local campaigers at Kingstanding Circle / Photograph supplied by Reform UK

Words by John Lambert

Residents aren’t imagining this? They’re living it. Every single day.

Bins overflowing like a Victorian slum, fly-tipping, rats, noise at all hours, parking that’s basically impossible and once decent family streets turning into transient chaos.

People can see it with their own eyes. They can smell it.

What makes this whole thing reek is the rank hypocrisy from some of the very councillors who are supposed to be sorting it out.

They’ll moan in WhatsApp groups, post outraged tweets, nod sagely in meetings about “the HMO problem” and how something must be done, all while quietly owning multiple HMO properties themselves and cashing the cheques. Sorry, but you cannot have it both ways.

If they are benefiting from a system that is damaging their own constituents’ quality of life, they should spare residents the performative hand-wringing.

That is not leadership. It is posturing.

No wonder trust in local politicians is in the gutter. People are sick to death of this two-faced nonsense. One message for the cameras, another reality behind closed doors. Residents want straight talking. They want consistency.

Above all, they want councillors who aren’t feathering their own nests while pretending to care about the mess.

If we really want to sort out the HMO mess, the overcrowding, the anti-social behaviour, the way it’s dragging down whole neighbourhoods, then councillors need to step up and enforce strict licensing, inspect every property thoroughly and close down any that don’t meet basic standards.

Erdington and every other town blighted by this deserves proper representation, not managed outrage and political hypocrisy.

Follow Reform UK Erdington Branch on X/Twitter at www.x.com/ReformErdington

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OPINION: John Lambert, Chair of Reform UK Erdington Branch

(l-r) John Lambert – Chair of Reform UK’s Erdingotn Branch, and Reform UK local campaigners by Kingstanding Circle

Words by John Lambert

Dear residents of Castle Vale, Erdington, Gravelly Hill, Kingstanding, Oscott, Perry Common, Pype Hayes, and Stockland Green.

Let’s cut to the chase. On 9 February, we were with Nigel Farage at a rammed NEC rally. Say what you like about rallies, but the momentum is undeniable. Big-name defections like Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman, polls showing Reform ahead nationwide, it’s game on for May’s local elections.

Reform are gearing up to fight every seat in Birmingham and deliver where Labour’s let you down.

You’ve spelt it out loud and clear to us. Potholes wrecking Slade Road, Chester Road, and Gravelly Lane. Fly-tipping blighting Witton Lakes, Stockland Green’s back streets and Castle Vale’s parks.

Bin collections have been in meltdown since that endless dispute kicked off in early 2025 and those overcrowded HMOs and exempt accommodation fuelling anti-social chaos in Oscott and Kingstanding.

Birmingham City Council crashed and burned in 2023 effectively bankrupt. Council tax? It’s UP over 17% in two years and now they’re asking for another 4.99% hike while spinning yarns about how they’re “not bankrupt” because the books balance. Erdington residents aren’t fools. If it’s all so balanced, then why are the basics still in tatters?

Reform’s plan is simple and straight. Slash the waste, patch those potholes pronto, hammer fly-tippers with zero-tolerance enforcement, sort the bins so they’re reliable again and crack down hard on dodgy landlords and unsafe HMOs.

We’ll demand proper community policing, protect our parks and enforce planning rules that put residents first so our streets feel safe, clean and cared for again.

For more from Reform UK Erdington Branch visit www.reformerdington.co.uk

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OPINION: John Lambert, Chair of Reform UK Erdington Branch

Chair of Reform UK Erdington Branch John Lambert (far left) with local campaigners at Kingstanding Circle / Photograph supplied by Reform UK Erdington Branch

(Ed’s note… this column was written for the January/February Erdington Local newspaper and first published on 20.01.26)

Words by John Lambert

January in Erdington has a particular honesty. The lights are down and what remains is the everyday. Getting the kids to school, keeping a business open and hoping the street still feels like yours when you get home.

All across Castle Vale, Erdington, Gravelly Hill, Kingstanding, Oscott, Perry Common, Pype Hayes and Stockland Green, residents are telling us the same thing. They do not want another set of promises in 2026. They want the basics done properly. Bins collected on time, streets kept clean, potholes repaired before they swallow a wheel and anti-social behaviour dealt with, rather than managed.

They also want fairness. Planning rules should mean something, not least when decent streets are being slowly worn down by fly-tipping, nuisance vehicles and the quiet creep of overcrowded HMOs that change a street’s rhythm overnight. Good landlords should not be undercut by rogue operators who ignore standards because enforcement is rare. Residents should not be left to log the same complaints again and again while nothing moves.

Operation Fearless by West Midlands Police has brought a bracing reminder of what normal should look like. Visible patrols, pace and consequence. But a town should not require a named operation to feel protected. If urgency works when it is organised and resourced, it should work every day of the year.

We are Reform UK’s Erdington Branch.

Like every resident in Erdington, we want competence. We will push for transparent spending, firmer enforcement and a council that treats residents as customers, not an afterthought. You may have already seen us in Erdington’s neighbourhoods, listening, taking notes and asking residents the simplest question of all.

What would you fix first if the people in charge were finally prepared to do the job? Please send your suggestions to [email protected]

For more from Reform UK’s Erdington Branch visit www.reformerdington.co.uk