A leading official at Gloucester City Council has accepted he made a "misjudgement" when penning a satirical song about the authority's waste contractor Amey.

A copy of an e-mail sent by the council's corporate director Jonathan Lund to key councillors and officers shows the words to a song about waste management set to the tune of Three Lions.

The e-mail which was leaked to Punchline by a "frustrated" employee of Gloucester City Council shows eight different verses and choruses to the song which was sent on July 13, 2018.

Mr Lund who earned £88.089 as the council's corporate director last year said he penned the song in his own time as an attempt to raise the spirits of colleagues. 

It talks of 'fly-tipped waste in hedges' and 'dodgy numbers in the ledgers' set to the tune of the Skinner, Baddiel and Lightning Seeds song is synonymous with England football success.

Sent just the say after England were defeated in the semi-finals of the World Cup it talks about 'Waste Coming Home.'

A week before the song was penned, Councillor Richard Cook had reported his anger that Amey had lost 2,000 tonnes of rubbish, the equivalent of 150 bin lorries of waste.

He said that was reported to have cost the council £246,059, a claim that Amey denied.

Amey continue to work as the council's waste contractor and when asked for a comment from Punchline, Mr Lund said "significant progress" had been made with the relationship.

He also apologised to colleagues at the council and Amey for his "misjudgement."

In a full statement to Punchline, Mr Lund said: "Although this was produced in my own time and shared during a lunch break, I fully accept it was a misjudgement on my behalf and I'd like to apologise to colleagues both at Amey and the council.

"The World Cup was in full swing, full council had just been discussing our relationship with Amey, which was, at that time, in a difficult place.

"This was a misguided attempt at raising the spirits of colleagues, reflecting the views shared during the meeting.

"We have since made significant progress with Amey and I look forward to continuing our relationship with them."

The Song in Full:

It's coming home, it's coming home, it's coming
Waste is coming home
It's coming home, it's coming home, it's coming
Street Sweep's coming home
It's coming home, it's coming home, it's coming
Waste is coming home.

Everyone seems to know the score, they've seen it all before
They just know, they're so sure
That Amey's gonna throw it away, gonna blow it away
And I know they can't stay, 'cause I remember.

[Chorus: All]
Two thousand tonnes of dirt
Streets in need of weeding
Eleven years of hurt
And Gate streets that need sweeping.

So many jokes, so many sneers
But all those 'Oh, so nears', wear you down through the years
But I still see that bloke with a brush, in nowt like a rush
Standing talking to mates, nobody cleaning.

[Chorus: All]

Amey on the shirt
Fly tipped waste in hedges
Eleven years of hurt
Dodgy numbers in the ledgers.

[Refrain]

It's coming home, it's coming
Waste is coming home
It's coming home, it's coming home, it's coming
Grass Cut's coming home
It's coming home, it's coming home, it's coming
The Zapper's coming home
It's coming home, it's coming home, it's coming
Deep clean's coming home

[Chorus]

(It's coming home) Amey's hit the dirt
(It's coming home, it's coming) Reputation's bleeding
(Waste is coming home)
(It's coming home) Eleven years of hurt
(It's coming home, it's coming) Of Ubico I'm dreaming
(Recycling's coming home)
(It's coming home) Two thousand tonnes of dirt
(It's coming home, it's coming) A depot badly teeming
(Sweeping's coming home)
(It's coming home) No more years of hurt
(Litter pick's coming home, it's coming home) Now we can start dreaming
(Mowing's coming home)
(It's coming home) Gloucester on the shirt
(It's coming home, it's coming) Gum zapper still gleaming
(Food waste's coming home)
(It's coming home) No more years of hurt
(It's coming home, it's coming) Richard Cook still beaming
(Waste is coming home)."