Taxpayers to foot £120k bill to solve seagull scavenging, fouling, nesting and noise in Yorkshire

It would include 5,000 gull-proof bin sacks to prevent scavenging, jet washing guano – the nutrient-rich excrement of seabirds – in pedestrian areas and educating the public not to feed the seagulls.

The scheme is set to establish an environment where gulls are "accepted and protected as a valued part of coastal biodiversity", with coastal towns maintained as welcoming, safe and thriving places for residents, visitors, and businesses.

Cllr Richard Foster, who serves as the North Yorkshire Council's Environment Executive Member, told GB News: "The strategy is really around education, jet washing where there are problems to clear up after the gulls, and better strength bin bags and altering bins.

"But again, it's really moving it forward and moving that education side forward so that we basically look after the goals and let them look after us."

Previous methods to control gull numbers and deter them from nesting on buildings included the installation of proofing measures and some lethal and other methods, such as nest destruction.

But the council said that "these actions, particularly proofing measures, were installed randomly without effective risk assessment and evaluation of their success or otherwise".

In a recent report, the council found seagulls have been targeting bins to access food waste, and black sacks were easily ripped open.

Seagulls can also swipe food from people along the coast, known as "gull muggings".

Food sellers along Scarborough's South Bay witness 'gull muggings' on a daily basis.

As part of the council's plan, businesses will be advised on waste control and proofing measures where seagulls pose a public health risk.

Lee Sheader works at Ros Grime Shellfish and told GB News: "I don't think really that it's the dustbins that are your problem – it's people carrying fish and chips and things.

"They're always going to go for it because it's just there. People who feed them and teach them that food is associated with the person.

"Everyone down here sells food, and they're just watching all the time. So this heavy is a bit of a red zone.

"So I'm always having to tell people to watch out for the seagulls when they've got food."

Lucy Fowler, who works at Flamingo Bay which sells ice cream, added: "We have issues all the time, people are buying ice creams that cost £4 or £5 worth of ice creams, and they're just going out and seagulls are describing them, grabbing the flakes, grabbing the wafers off of them, and the ice creams are just spoiled."

The council has put signs up along the seafront on bins and railings warning people against feeding the seagulls.

GB News asked people in Scarborough if they think seagulls are a pest or just part of the seaside.

Mark said: "They've got to live somewhere, haven't they? I've never had a problem with Scarborough, but been down on holiday in Cornwall and had my ham sandwich pinched off me by one seagull."

Dom added: "I think personally they are a nuisance, but it is wildlife and you can't really do much about it."

His partner, Natalie, also told GB News: "It's part and parcel of the beach. It's just what you get in there – I love seeing them and the sounds that they make."

Bert also said: "They want food and they are going to get the food as there's a lot of it out there."

However, Janice disagreed, telling The People's Channel: "My granddaughter had just got a hot dog and one [seagull] swooped down in a pincer movement and nicked it.

"Ice creams have gone, fish and chips have gone. so seagulls should be gone."

The key pillars of the new seagull scheme are focused on investment in education campaigns, gull-proof rubbish bags, plus new and retrofitted litter bins.

As part of the urban seagull strategy, the council has been urged to speed up plans for weekly food waste collections to stop gulls attacking bin bags.

A final decision on the urban gull strategy will be made by North Yorkshire Council's executive committee in August.