Mayoral ceremony disrupted by bin workers

A PRESTIGIOUS ceremony to mark the election of Birmingham’s new lord mayor took a dramatic turn when protesters interrupted the event from the public gallery.

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Zafar Iqbal, who serves as a councillor for the Tyseley and Hay Mills ward, took up the politically-neutral role at the lively meeting last Tuesday.

The grand ceremony was overshadowed when those supporting striking bin workers began to shout from the public gallery.

‘The tense situation continues to rumble on, with one woman angrily shouting during the meeting: “Could you take an £8,000 pay cut?”

Another protester also yelled about workers ‘losing their livelihoods, losing their homes’ before whistles blared in the council chamber room.