Cat-sized rats are taking over the UK in swarms as major cities report an increase in the rodents, with one council even threatening to increase the ‘rat tax’ for locals to help sort the problem
Rats are taking over major cities across the UK as residents fear infestations are at an all time high. Tottenham has become the latest destination to report cat-sized rodents roaming the streets and invading houses, while other major cities like Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow are also suffering.
London appears to have seen the biggest spike in rat infestations in recent months, possibly due to a rise in fly tipping leaving rodents feasting on food waste. Mounds of rubbish in Dagenham – nicknamed ‘Ratland’ – have led to pests “plaguing” the once rural town.
Locals have called on the Labour government and council to act. One resident posted a video on social media showing a gang of nearly 10 rats eating in broad daylight in Tottenham Green East last month.
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Meanwhile, Birmingham has also seen an influx of the rodents thanks to recent bin strikes leaving rubbish piles on the streets for weeks. Mr Timms, who owns WJ Pest Solutions, is often called out to help with infestations – and said his workload has doubled in the past few months after the bin strike began.
He told the i: “There’s a real sense of disbelief about the scale of what’s happening here. I’ve been doing this for 11 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this. The rats are not only getting bigger, but they’re also getting bolder, venturing into people’s homes and even destroying cars.”
Huge rodents were seen in March making life hell for residents in Small Heath. They have been gorging on food left rooting in giant rubbish mountains and jumping out of over-flowing wheelie bins.
Furious locals say some of the rats, which pose a serious health risk, are the size of small cats. Our snapper spotted dozens of rodents scurrying about in Small Heath’s bustling streets this week.
One fed-up resident said: “It’s absolutely disgusting. They are huge and seem to be everywhere at the moment. It’s like a third world country, not one of Britain’s biggest cities. It’s time something was done about it.”
Locals say hungry rats have even chewed through wires in their vehicles, leaving them with huge repair bills. And back in November, huge rats were spotted causing mayhem in Asda.
Footage captured the moment the rats – described as the size of cats – scurried along the aisles at the branch in Horwich near Bolton, Lancs. A brave worker was seen trying to scoop up the animal with makeshift paddles.
A source said: “Asda has raised the issue. It’s a real problem. There have always been rats outside the store, but now they are regularly seen inside.”
Another source said: “There have been massive cuts to staff hours and cleaning workers and this is unfortunately the result.” An Asda Official said at the time: “We have robust hygiene processes in place in all our stores and took immediate steps to resolve this issue. We can reassure customers that the store has been inspected regularly since then and no further incidents have been reported.”
To make matters worse, Birmingham City Council are looking at increasing ‘rat tax’ – a charge for pest control which was previously free.
Outraged locals now have to pay £24 per call out but the council plans to hike prices once again to £26.40. Rebel councillor Sam Forsyth has slammed the Labour-run council, telling BirminghamLive she had “no choice” but to vote against their budget proposals as increased ‘rat tax’ would hit the city’s poorest the hardest.
But speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions on April 2, Sir Keir Starmer said: “In relation to the situation in Birmingham, it is completely unacceptable.
“I fully support the council in declaring a major incident to resolve the situation and we will put in whatever additional support is needed.”
In 2023, Glasgow was also hit with a rat crisis as rodents ran riot across the Scottish city. One street was declared a “no-go zone” for refuse workers due to the infestation.
Chris Mitchell, GMB convenor for Glasgow’s cleansing workers, said some staff needed hospital treatment after being bitten or scratched by rats in other areas of the city. Vermin infestations in Glasgow rose by 31 per cent from 2021 to 2022, with 10,323 reports.
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said previously: “We are hopeful our pest control treatments at this location are having an impact but we will continue to monitor this situation closely.”
Manchester has also faced rat infestations in recent years, with Rusholme Grove being hit particularly hard in 2023. Locals claimed the increase in rodents was due to fly tipping.
A statement from the council said at the time: “Rats are unhygienic and unpleasant for local people and we therefore take pest control very seriously.
“Rusholme is receiving additional targeted treatment from our teams to help the issue.”
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