Stuart Aspinall, 29, manager of record shop Entertainment For Less, in the Grand Arcade, is so sick of the site of cooing birds on our pavements that he wants Wigan Council to get rid of them for good.

Now he has launched Pigeon Free ASAP, a campaign aimed at driving his feathered adversary, which he believes are a health hazard as well as a nuisance, out of the town centre.

Stuart, from Springfield, said: "Over the last few years the population seems to have increased rapidly.

"You can't walk down the street without them flying up in your face and there is excrement everywhere, which is disgusting.

"It has been a problem for years but now it has got to breaking point. Something must be done."

Personal experience fuelled Stuart's desire to rid Wigan of the pests, sometimes dubbed flying rats because of their reputation as disease carrying scavengers.

A friend, who used to work for an extermination company, has described the mess left by pigeons when they occupy abandoned buildings, and the cost of cleaning this up, to Stuart, adding fuel to his campaign.

He has also been divebombed by low-flying pigeons on the street, but the final straw was when one of their number bobbed in to his workplace.

Stuart said: "It has got to the point now where there are birds inside the Galleries and pigeons walking in to shops, which is just revolting.
"And when they are walking around the inside of the shops, well, it really is just not on.

"If there were rats running around shops there would be outrage but the fact they are pigeons doesn't make a difference in my eyes."

The lone campaigner has now set up a website where like minded Wiganers can add their messages of support for his campaign and sign a petition, which Stuart plans to take to Wigan Council.

A number of Pigeon Free ASAP posters will also appear at designated fly-poster across the town centre.

To add your name to Stuart's petition go to www.myspace.com/pigeonfreeasap.