A local resident of Paige Moss said she could not even leave her doors open in case a rat got inside (Photo: Getty Images)
Huge rats “take over” the Merseyside area, leaving locals too terrified to sit in their own gardens.
Residents of Page Moss, in the Knowsley neighborhood, say more needs to be done to control the flow of rodents on their streets and homes.
The council says it has to charge locals for pest control services due to cuts in government funding.
But at £ 35 a visit, local authorities say it’s still cheaper to transfer the rat man than elsewhere.
He said he was working to address the problem, but it had been going on for years with little sign of improvement.
A local woman says the size of the rats makes her feel “sick” and that “she can’t even let the dog out if she goes after one.”
She said her “skin crawled” as a cat-sized rat ran from the shed to the bins and back as she and her husband sat in the garden.
Knowsley’s council says that after more than a decade of savings, it cannot afford to provide rat extermination services for free (Photo: John Lord)
The frustrated local told Liverpool Echo: “They’re everywhere, it’s awful. It makes me not want to sit. Not only can we not open the doors in case someone enters the house.
“The council must take action. But also people should be made to keep the gardens clean and the council should check their residents.
“People don’t help by keeping trash, but something needs to be done to prevent it, instead of asking people to pay.”
The woman says the rats ate through the first shed of her and her husband and even saw them gnaw on concrete and leave “big holes”.
A spokesman for Knowsley’s council said: “Despite these best efforts, we are aware that there are still some parties that do not follow the council’s advice and continue to allow overgrown or poorly maintained areas to offer shelter for rodents.
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“This creates problems for the wider neighborhood. We are working actively to address this as a priority and these efforts with partners, residents and businesses will continue.
“For most of the government’s austerity decade, the Council has lost about half of its funding and can no longer afford to provide free pest control treatments for mice and rats.
“It is not uncommon for local authorities to charge for this service, and the fee charged at Knowsley is well below the tariff charged by commercial companies and represents a good value for money.
“The Council is not legally obliged to provide a direct pest control service, whether free of charge or for a fee. The legal responsibility for pest control lies with the owner and occupants of the premises or land on which they are located.
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