Residents say Birmingham shopkeepers are cashing in on the bin strikes by hiking up the prices of rat poison amid the infestation of "The Squeaky Blinders"."

Locals say the cost of rat bait has skyrocketed due to demand as the ongoing industrial action which has been blighting the city enters its fourth week.



The giant rats invading the streets have even been given the tongue-in-cheek nickname of "The Squeaky Blinders" by Brummies "trying to see the funny side."

Birmingham City Council has been laying on mobile bin collections in an attempt to clear an estimated 17,000 tonnes of uncollected rubbish.

Today (Mon) a collection zone was opened in the Billesley area, which was once again swamped with people trying to dispose of their waste.

Piles of rubbish bags and long queues of traffic could be seen building up around the collection zone along Yardley Wood Road this morning.

Fiaz Ahmed said shopkeepers were taking advantage of strikes by ramping up prices of rat poison as the council will not pay to tackle the rodent infestation.

The 73-year-old said: "I think it's absolutely ridiculous. I mean they're in positions where they can sort things out but there's stubbornness on both sides I would say. "

"It's the people that are suffering, they are not. Some of them don't even live in Birmingham. "

"There's rats and the council doesn't pay for the rats, so you have to buy your own things. As you can imagine the price of rat bait has gone up too. Skyrocketed."

"It's a shame for Birmingham City Council that it's got like this."

"Council tax has gone up and everything, so I don't understand why. They both have to give way, if they can find the middle ground this goes away."

Richard Howe, 38, who was also trying to dispose of his backlog of rubbish, added: "We've heard of shops selling out of rat poison. "

"So where there is a demand for it, I guess they are going to cash in while they can. Its rumbled on for too long now and needs sorting. "

"The rat problem is a big worry but I've seen them being called The Squeaky Blinders on social media, which I think highlights Brummie's self-effacing sense of humour. "

"It seems to have caught on and I suppose they are like a big gang ruling the streets...taking over the city. "

"You've got to try and see the funny side where you can but there's no denying this is a serious problem." "

Angry Charles Walker, who was attending the mobile refuse spot, demanded a refund on his council tax.

He said: "It's outrageous, I want a rebate on the council tax. "

"We're pushing our bins all the way over from the other side of the roundabout, we've had to do it three times. "

"We haven't had them collected in weeks, it must be five weeks. And before that they were on a temporary strike so we've probably had recycling collected once since Christmas."

"What are you supposed to do, it just piles up outside the house. The foxes come and tear the boxes apart, it's just outrageous"

Another local, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "It's been more than three weeks since our bins were collected and we've been struggling. "

"Everywhere is a mess, smelling, bad smell and rats everywhere. We decide just to bring it here so at least we keep the area clean." "

But optimistic Tracey Richards, 57, said she supported the strikes and added: "I'm in favour of the bin men, they're doing the right thing and they should hold out for it."

"We've just got to put up with it. This is a good service that they're doing. I'm behind them." "

William Timms, who runs WJ Pest Solutions, claimed some local pest control firms have also been upping their prices.

He said: "I've heard that there are a couple of pest control companies who have put their prices up, taking advantage of demand. "

"Give it time and they'll start increasing product prices. I've seen some stores selling sticky pads, and they're illegal - people are getting desperate."

Sharon Nicol, director of Birmingham Pest Control Ltd, said: "I imagine domestic use poison is flying off the shelves and I wouldn't be surprised if shopkeepers are putting prices up."

"We only use the professional stuff which we buy in bulk so our prices have not been affected. "

"But we find many people try to tackle the problem themselves and don't want to use pest control companies, until they realise they need us. "

"The problem is that the domestic products can be misused and then become a danger to other roaming animals like cats."

Stuart Howes, managing director of Greenlab Pestcontrol in Birmingham, added: "Residents can only buy 300g packets of rodenticide for amateur use."

"We only purchase from professional suppliers where you require a licence."

"So our prices remain unaffected, however I can see suppliers to the amateur market putting up prices due to supply and demand."

"Rodenticide has regulations on how to use it, which is probably being abused at the moment by residents."