With reference to the article about the rats seen along Ledbury's Town Trail (Malvern Gazette & Ledbury Reporter, December 1), I was disappointed but not surprised at the relative insouciance of Herefordshire Council officials when asked to deal with this situation.

I have seen dead rats along the Town Trail myself but have been rather more concerned at the rats which have been invading gardens and sheds, and even entering houses along The Southend of late. I am told by neighbours that the public sewers are decrepit and that rat bait used to be laid very regularly along them by the council to control this ancient problem. Nowadays, such public health measures have apparently been abandoned.

Pest control officers will visit any individual house for a fee of £27 but blame bird feeding and compost heaps, ignoring ill-maintained sewers. When I suggested that the rats should be tackled over a wider area with real determination by the authorities, I was informed that this would not be possible.

I can contrast this with attitudes in the south of France, of which I have direct experience. There, any householder can visit the local town or village hall to obtain rat or mouse poisons without a charge, as the authorities reason that only thus will vermin be controlled across a wide area. In addition, refuse is collected not once but three times weekly and streets are cleaned regularly. Not surprisingly, rat problems are rare and isolated.

How long can the British continue to pretend that this is an advanced Western country?

Eirian Hart, The Southend, Ledbury.

(via e-m