Oh RATS! Glasgow firm warns bin strikes could cause serious pest problems

A Glasgow pest control firm is warning that upcoming bin strikes could lead to serious rat infestations across the city.

It comes after refuse collectors confirmed the action in a row over pay - it will mean bins across most of Glasgow and the West will go unemptied between the 14th and 22nd of August.

Pest Solutions managing director Chris Cagienard is urging residents to take reasonable steps to avoid a surge in rodents and bugs.

He said: "It was bad last time there were bin strikes, with rubbish piled up in the streets and that rubbish collecting by our roadsides and whatnot will create food for for pests of all different sizes - from insect pests through rodents and wildlife pests as well.

READ MORE: Council waste workers set for eight-day strike in August, union confirms

"In our urban environments, to be completely honest, it is a battle to control pests at the best of times even when we're trying to do our best keeping rubbish under control.

"People can be afraid of rats and mice and things in amongst rubbish and that itself can create a negative feedback loop where people are afraid to go near their bins because of what might be in there.

"As a result, waste gets stored more haphazardly meaning that it just makes it worse and it just escalates from there."

Public health risks

Chris added: "The problem isn't really when the waste is all collecting there in the street, it's when the refuse collectors come off strike and go and start the tidy up operation.

"All that food that the rats and mice were living on is removed, then those rats need to go and find other places to get replacement food.

"That could be our homes or our businesses.

"Professional pest controllers deal with what we call 'public health pests' every day, that's rats, mice and cockroaches, in particular.

"Those are pests where there's legislation in place which means that we need to keep them under control because they spread nasty diseases.

"These are the pests that can really affect the public health of the nation and we need to make sure that they are kept under control so that we don't get you know spread of disease and illness.

"It's not just rats - flies and other pests are going to be attracted because of the heat.

"Insect pests are much larger propagators of disease so they're the ones that are it can be more of a concern."

Demands for emergency talks

Meanwhile, Scottish Government ministers are facing demands to hold emergency talks in a bid to prevent the strike.

With three unions having announced co-ordinated action for August, the Tories called on Holyrood ministers to convene a meeting with local authority leaders and unions.

It comes amid a dispute over pay, with all three unions having previously rejected a 3.2% rise offered by local government body Cosla - which insists it has "very limited options available".

Although talks between Cosla leaders, unions and Scottish Finance Secretary Shona Robison took place on Tuesday, no agreement was reached.

'Explore all options'

A similar dispute, which saw rubbish pile up on the streets of Edinburgh during the festival season in 2022, only ended when the Scottish Government provided extra funds to councils for workers' pay.

Cosla resources spokesperson Katie Hagmann insisted local government leaders will "explore all options to avoid industrial action".

The Conservatives have now called on the Scottish Government to intervene, with Lothian MSP Miles Briggs saying: "We simply cannot allow rubbish to pile high in the streets of Scotland again.

"This strike action is set to take place in the middle of the Edinburgh festivals, at a time the capital is welcoming the world to our beautiful city.

"In 2022 we saw the level of disruption that these strikes caused, with rubbish strewn across our streets.

"The strikes would also cause significant public health concerns, with rubbish not being removed.

"SNP ministers must call an emergency meeting with Cosla and the unions to intervene and prevent the strike from happening."

'Fair and acceptable' offer

GMB Scotland senior organiser Keir Greenaway said the 3.2% offer failed to keep pace with the cost of living and was below the rise offered to council workers in England.

He added: "Industrial action will start in two weeks unless ministers and local authorities urgently identify the money needed to make a fair and acceptable offer.

"These strikes will be disruptive to all the Scots who rely on our members' work, but would not be necessary if councils had shown a greater urgency and sense of realism."

Collette Hunter, Unison Scotland's local government chairwoman, said: "Cosla and the Scottish Government must understand the anger among council staff. They are resolute and strikes will go ahead unless a solution can be found."

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said its members will strike "unless there is a new, credible pay offer put on the table".

Graham McNab, industrial officer with the union, added a "significant shift" to the pay offer will be required to prevent industrial action.

He said: "Strike action is not yet inevitable but action from the politicians must be imminent.

"There is a window of opportunity to resolve this dispute but the politicians should be under no illusions that our members will take strike action if necessary to secure the pay offer which they deserve."

'Open and honest dialogue'

Ms Hagmann said Tuesday's talks had given Cosla the chance to "articulate the financial challenges facing local government in relation to meeting pay claims".

She added: "It was an open and honest dialogue about how challenging the situation is in relation to council finances.

"Whilst no immediate solution was identified, officers will now undertake further work at pace in the coming days to explore all options to avoid industrial action."

She stressed to the Finance Secretary "the very limited options available to local government, and that any solution needs to be both affordable and sustainable".

Ms Hagmann continued: "Cosla remains committed to continuing our negotiations towards finding a solution as quickly as possible, seeking to do all we can to avoid industrial action and its damaging impact on our communities.

"Council leaders value the local government workforce and their essential work across our communities, they recognise the workforce pressures and the need to reward equitably."

Speaking after the talks on Tuesday evening, Ms Robison said her officials will now "work at pace with local government officers to understand what an improved negotiating envelope may look like".

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