A Powys pensioner says he has been in a two-year battle to get a wheelie bin from Powys County Council - and is now battling an infestation of rodents in his house.

Philip Hague, 67, from Newtown says he has been trying to get a wheelie bin for his property for over two years and is now dealing with rats and mice at his property as rubbish piles up.

Mr Hague, who is a pensioner, said that due to his fixed income, making trips to the tip each week is a strain on his finances and puts him in a difficult position.

“Doing that every week is very costly,” said Mr Hague. “It’s got to a point where do I put the heating on, take this stuff to the tip again or eat?”

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Mr Hague moved to the property two years ago and coped initially by using a skip that was being used while he had work done at the house.

“There were some days where there was more household waste than there was building waste,” said Mr Hague.

However, after the work was completed around September last year the problem grew. Mr Hague said that he has repeatedly rung the council to get a bin delivered but has only received recycling boxes which has led to the rubbish piling up in his kitchen.

“It has begun to attract vermin, such as mice and rats. It’s a public health issue,” said Mr Hague.

“The recycling containers were delivered within the month, but so far, after approaching four months, I still do not have a black 80 litre wheelie bin. This is in spite of calling each month, to request that a new wheelie bin is provided urgently.”

Mr Hague added the situation was “very distressing” and is beginning to “severely affect his mental health”.

Powys County Council insists that it did not receive a request for a bin until November, however Mr Hague said this was “spurious” as he has records of a reference number from the council from September.

A spokesperson for Powys County Council said: “Mr Hague first requested a new set of recycling boxes and a wheeled bin on 23 November.

“The recycling boxes were delivered, however we have experienced some delays with the deliveries of the wheeled bins, particularly over the Christmas period, for which we apologise.

“We hope that Mr Hauge, and all other residents, make the best use of the weekly recycling collections and recycle as mush of their waste as possible, leaving only a small amount for the three-weekly wheeled bin collections.

“We will ensure a wheeled bin is delivered as soon as possible.”