Fresh talks aimed at resolving the long-running Birmingham bin strike are to be held on May Day.
Conciliation service Acas will be involved in the meeting for the first time since the row flared earlier this year.
The inclusion of Acas was agreed on Wednesday during a brief meeting between Unite and Birmingham City Council.
Hundreds of members of Unite have been on all-out strike for more than a month in a dispute over pay and jobs, leading to rubbish piling up in the streets.
Acas director of dispute resolution Kevin Rowan said: “We can confirm that Birmingham City Council and Unite have agreed to Acas conciliation talks to help them resolve the current dispute involving refuse workers.
“The talks are scheduled to take place on May 1.”
Shadow minister Alex Burghart earlier told Cabinet Office questions in the House of Commons: “I’d like to turn to the sorry state of Labour-run Birmingham where rats the size of dachshunds are terrifying the local residents.
“Indeed in the Daily Telegraph this morning, we read that Birmingham City Council has warned of a possible surge of rat borne diseases to which the elderly, disabled people and babies are particularly susceptible.
“The Government has had emergency powers throughout this crisis, not least Civil Contingencies Act. Will the minister set out for the House why she has declined to use them?”
Cabinet Office minister Abena Oppong-Asare replied: “I’m sure (Mr Burghart) would like to join me in praising the Deputy Prime Minister (Angela Rayner) and her team for hard work on this in terms of getting this cleared. A lot of the rubbish has been cleared.”
Conservative MP Mr Burghart then said: “I’m afraid I’m not going to congratulate the Deputy Prime Minister in much the same way that the people of Birmingham are not thanking her either.
“I very much hope that the Deputy Prime Minister will take the Prime Minister and maybe the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to Birmingham to see the fact that there is still very much rubbish that is not cleared.
“And I hope that the Labour Party will perhaps undertake not to take any donations from Unite the Union while this crisis is ongoing.”
