Top level talks will be held about Bradford's soaring rat population amid fears for public health.

Bradford Council contacted Yorkshire Water for a meeting following Monday's Telegraph & Argus revelation that complaints about the vermin had trebled during the past three years.

The Council says complaints about rats have increased since Yorkshire Water put its sewer baiting contract out to a private company.

Before 1997, the Council had carried out the work.

Now the Council will discuss the problem with Yorkshire Water on March 6. It has instructed principal environmental health manager Derrick Hopkinson to monitor numbers of rats in the sewers.

But Yorkshire Water has pointed out that infestations can be caused by rubbish on streets, and the mild weather has led to an increase in rats breeding.

A report on the talks will go to the Council's environmental scrutiny committee which will decide what action to take.

But Yorkshire Water says it spends more than almost any other sewage authority in the country on sewer baiting and uses a top company which also deals with the London Under-ground.

Scrutiny committee chairman Councillor Ghazanfer Kaliq (Lab, Bradford Moor) said they had contacted Yorkshire Water as soon as the article appeared in the T&A.

"We want the facts and figures. We want to discuss the seriousness of the situation and have grave public concerns. We want to talk about a contingency plan."

Council pest officers say the number of complaints rose by 123 to 1,270 last year and blame a new system of baiting rat 'hot-spots' rather than blanket coverage.

According to pest officers, there are fewer baiting spots in Bradford and only 50 in Baildon, which previously had 200.

But the Yorkshire Water spokesman said: "We are working closely with the Council's environmental health department. So far we have had no complaints from them.

"We carry out specific baiting when asked to and we inform them of our planned baiting. We keep them up to date with the findings."

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