A hopeful northeast MP compared a street in Newcastle to that of a warzone in “Syria” or “Gaza” due to overflowing rubbish in the streets.
Independent candidate Yvonne Ridley, with the TikTok handle vote4yvonne, is standing alongside huge black wheelie bins with rubbish littered in the streets.
During the video, she says: “It looks like a war zone but I'm not in Gaza or Syria. This is my hometown, Newcastle and this is Gill Street in the West End. Words are the tools of my trade but frankly, I'm almost stunned into silence.. almost.
“Now then, you might look at this and think 'what sort of people live here'. Well I tell you what, the people of the West End are the 'salt of the earth'.”
There have been planned bin strikes in South Tyneside, which have disrupted waste collections for almost nine months – as workers push back against 'bullying and toxic working culture'.
She added: “They're wonderful, hardworking, industrious people and most of them that I've spoken to, when I've said if you wanted one thing what would it be, and they say 'get rid of the rubbish'.
“I really feel for them. It's not only people who are going through the bins – whether they're looking for food or not.”
She continued: “Newcastle City Council, it's time for you to clean up your act because nobody deserves to be treated like this.
“They pay their rates, they pay their taxes. They pay their rents. They're working hard and they shouldn't have to come home to this.”
Yvonne Ridley is standing as an independent candidate in Newcastle Central and West in Thursday's General Election.
The former journalist, who was captured and held by the Taliban for 11 days in 2001 after crossing into Afghanistan undercover, is a prominent anti-war campaigner.
Users were quick to comment on the video, with one saying: “I don't think it looks anything close to a war zone.”
Others blamed residents for the rubbish while others said it was the responsibility of the landlords.