“It’s been absolutely unbelievable,” William Timms, a pest controller, tells Hannah Moore.

“Since March, calls have gone up 50%. Usually, I’m dealing with about three or four rodent jobs a day this time of year. And then I’ve got my insect jobs on top.

“But I’ve had to put my insect jobs on the back burner, because I’m just being inundated with rat calls. I’m doing about nine or 10 a day at the moment.”

Birmingham’s rubbish collectors have been on an all-out strike since early March. Piles of black bin bags and items of litter line roads across the city.

“The smell from here is just diabolical,” Timms says. “When I’m rummaging through it, looking for nests, I’m actually heaving.”

Jessica Murray, the Guardian’s social affairs correspondent, and Hannah discuss the financial crisis at Birmingham council, the jobs under threat, and the impact on people in the city. Hannah also visits the picket line to meet the workers at the centre of the dispute.

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