The number of police officers sent to Birmingham bin strike picket lines has been cut, it has emerged.
It comes after waste collections were disrupted on Thursday when bin lorries were blocked by striking refuse workers from leaving two depots and rubbish once again piles up around the city.
A West Midlands Police spokesperson said officers were still sent to pickets but did not explain why they reduced the number while the city council said it was warned of the move just hours beforehand.
Workers who are Unite union members have been involved in all-out industrial action since 11 March in a pay row that now also includes a dispute over bin lorry drivers' wages.
Police patrols had helped to secure the smooth exit of trucks in recent weeks but reduced powers meant piles of rubbish were starting to reappear in parts of the city.
The use of those powers, under Section 14 of the Public Order Act, a law used around public gatherings, were "no longer in place", a force spokesperson confirmed,
The legislation had been used to prevent strikers from delaying trucks as they left depots in the city.
