Two rats gather in a shrub at the Saint Jacques Tower park in the centre of Paris. (Photo: AP)

The mayor of Paris said Paris already spends 500 million euros a year for cleanliness and waste management. The situation is improving but Paris is not yet perfectly clean. She said municipal authorities want to step up efforts to address the problem. Paris will increase its 1,900 inspectors by more than half to deal with violations. The number of street cleaners in Paris will increase to 7,000 by the end of this year. The hours of waste collection will be extended. Restaurants and other buildings are urged to place more ashtrays near entrances and exits. Paris will spend 1.5 million euros to rid itself of rats, whose population has been growing rapidly. Mayor Hidalgo says in a civilized city, cleanliness must be everybody´s responsibility calling for a change in the mindsets and habits of residents. Paris came under fire in December for allegedly dragging its feet on what has been dubbed its "war on rats".

Most of the criticism was centred on Hidalgo and the city´s environmental health services chief. The city´s failure to keep the streets clean was also the major sticking point for residents.  Last year, a number of tourist spots and 5 parks were temporarily closed because of trash wastes and rats. Local officials warned people not to feed pigeons and rats in public places. Early this year, Paris installed a number of environmentally friendly public toilets.

The Republican group on the Council of Paris scoffed at Hidalgo´s measures. The group said Mayor Hidalgo is trying to short-circuit the opposition by announcing a few placebo measures, but her measures include absolutely nothing new.