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Bailiffs have entered into Birmingham’s historic Council House to claim goods and settle an unpaid city council debt.

Two High Court enforcement officers are understood to be going around the building’s back offices taking stock of items they might be able to seize to settle the bill in scenes reminiscent of TV show Can’t Pay We’ll Take It Away .

It has been branded a ‘farcical’ situation for Europe’s largest local authority to have failed to settle a bill to the extent that it is now on the receiving end of a court enforcement order. The council is disputing the debt.

An email memo to Council House staff sent today said: “Please note that we currently have two High Court Enforcement Officers walking within the Council House taking an inventory of items to potentially settle an outstanding debt.

“This issue is being managed through Legal Services and we have been advised not to hinder the officers in any way.”

According to council sources the issue surrounded a private landlord chasing unpaid rent from a private tenant whose housing benefit, issued by the city council, had been stopped.

But a council spokeswoman later explained: “We did have enforcement officers in the Council House in connection with a £5,000 debt that we are disputing, but this had nothing to do with suppliers or unpaid bills.

“We would point out that, due to the thousands of financial and legal transactions that local authorities deal with, it is not unusual for some to eventually involve the courts and enforcement officers.

“The enforcement action is currently on hold why we deal with this.”

Meanwhile opposition Conservative leader Councillor Robert Alden said: “Birmingham has a budget of over £3 billion yet through mismanagement they now have bailiffs turning up to take a list of items they could take in lieu of payment from the Council for failing to pay suppliers.

“This is a farcical situation. Time and again local suppliers, small businesses employing local residents have to chase the council for payment."

The last time the city council hit the headlines for debt repayment problems was in 2007 and 2008, when a new computer accounts system, called Voyager, left many businesses resorting to the courts, bailiffs and cutting supplies after it built up a backlog of 30,000 unpaid bills and invoices.