Concern over bed bugs is spreading to London, according to Mayor Sadiq Khan, who highlighted cleaning efforts in the British capital’s transport system on Tuesday.
• Also read: Bed bug infestation in France: how to protect yourself when traveling?
• Also read: Bed bugs: “collective panic” convinced the French
Despite recent statements by French Transport Minister Clément Beaune, who assured that there is “no recovery” in France, reports are increasing in the country and fears extend beyond France’s borders.
“This is a real cause for concern. “People are worried that these bed bugs in Paris will be a problem in London,” the British capital’s Labor mayor told the website PoliticsJoe.
Together with London transport operator TfL (Transports for London), “we are taking steps to ensure that we do not have problems with the regular cleaning of the Tube and our buses in London,” he added.
“TfL has one of the best systems for cleaning our equipment at night,” he sought to reassure, and “we are talking to our friends in Paris to see if we can learn from that.”
“For a number of reasons we do not believe this issue will arise in London,” he added, dismissing any overconfidence on the part of TfL.
He also noted that he had raised the issue with Eurostar, which, according to a recent press release from the cross-Channel rail company, had launched a “preventative detection campaign” and assured that it had not noticed an increase in bed bugs on board its trains .
The increase in the phenomenon does not seem to spare the United Kingdom either: according to the specialist company Rentokil, quoted by the Institute of Environmental Health, the infestation increased by 65% in the second quarter of 2023 compared to the previous year.
These insects, which disappeared from daily life in the 1950s and feed on human blood, have experienced a revival in developed countries in the last thirty years thanks to a more nomadic lifestyle, a consumption that encourages second-hand purchases and a increasing resistance to insecticides is making a comeback.