AN ANDOVER councillor is calling on the local authority to ‘focus’ on the ‘concerning’ rat problem in Andover town centre.

Cllr Christopher Ecclestone, who is a representative on both Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC) and Andover Town Council (ATC) says that he has been noticing the rodents at Town Mills Park for several years and, despite various pest control efforts, “they aren’t going away”.

Speaking to the Advertiser, he said: “If you go to Town Mills Park, they’ll come out and greet you.

“There has been a long problem there. There is a lot of foliage, and despite the thinning out of that they are back with a vengeance.

“They obviously live there, but they must munch off whatever garbage is left out by businesses around there, or in the park. So they have got a pretty great set up.”

He said that the issue is particularly concerning as “pandemics do come from rats”, adding: “We can never get rid of them totally, but we could focus on that area. I walk past there a lot and that’s where I see them, but they could well be in other areas of the town as well.”

Cllr Ecclestone raised the issue at a TVBC full council meeting on Friday, February 25, in which he questioned how much of the pest control budget was being spent on addressing this specific problem.

Cllr Maureen Flood, finance portfolio holder, said that she would find out and get back to him, while council leader Cllr Phil North added that the new 2022/23 budget would see an increase in spending on pest control.

Council documents indicate that approximately £125,000 has been spent on pest control in 2021/22, with an expected £127,100 to be spend in the coming year

Cllr Ecclestone continued: “That budget is a lot of money, but how much is being diverted to Andover town centre? I want better detail on how it’s being spent. What are the targets? What are the success hurdles for the pest control budget?

“It’s not like Test Valley are not spending money, but are we getting value for money?”

Cllr Ecclestone said he would like to see this “focus” aimed not only at finding and removing rats, but on discovering the root causes.

“If there are any bad actors here, people who are not putting their trash in enclosed containers, then we should be finding out who they are, because something is feeding and sustaining [the rats].”

Housing and environmental health portfolio holder, Cllr Tracey Tasker, said: “Unfortunately, town centres will attract rats where there is a ready source of food accessible, such as from food waste litter and the overfeeding of birds. Riverside locations can be particularly attractive to rats, especially where food intended for ducks and other birds is available too.

“TVBC has a proactive approach to pest control, with next year’s budget showing an increase in this area. The Town Mills area is regularly visited for monitoring and control purposes, with our officers last visiting the area as part of this work, earlier this week. Local residents and visitors to the Town Mills area are urged not to leave behind food waste and make use the large number of public bins that are provided.”

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