In what could bring a whole new meaning to the term "rat running", it has emerged there has been a 30 per cent increase in rodent complaints to Brisbane City Council in just four years.

At Tuesday's meeting at City Hall, Opposition Leader Milton Dick moved an urgency motion calling on the administration to immediately release data on the worst hit locations for the rodent, after ABC TV's 7.30 program revealed last Friday there were nearly 1500 complaints in the past financial year.

There were just more than 1100 complaints in 2010.

The motion was defeated by the LNP majority.

"The ratepayers deserve to know, is Brisbane being plagued by rats," Cr Dick asked.

"Is the council taking this issue seriously? I don't believe we are.

"If there is no problem you will release this information today.

"If 7.30 was wrong, you will release the information to ensure Brisbane isn't being plagued by rats."

Cr Dick said ratepayers deserved to know where in the city had been hit by any rodent infestations, particularly when it could potentially impact public health.

He referred to the case of a CBD restaurant, which a court fined $15,000 last month following a rat infestation.

"This is a serious issue and on behalf of the ratepayers of this city, I want to know where there are problems with rats," he said.

"We know there is a 30 per cent increase, we know the council doesn't take it seriously if we are seeing a 30 per cent increase.

"It is critical it comes into this council chamber, that the (Establishment and Co-ordination committee) that has been asleep at the wheel starts tackling these issues and bringing it to council."

The council's lifestyle chairman Krista Adams moved to assuage fears of a rat plague.

"I can tell Cr Dick right now we have been given no indication there is any rat problems across Brisbane, we have heard nothing of rat infestation," she said.

"I think the only rats infesting might be in the ALP after their convention two weeks ago."

Cr Adams was referring to the Labor Party's state conference in Brisbane, prompting Labor's Kim Flesser to quip, "I smell a rat".

Cr Dick had been aiming his comments at Field Services chairman David McLachlan, who appeared in the 7.30 report, however, Cr Adams said his comments were misdirected.

"I stand gobsmacked at the feigned outrage from the leader of the opposition who gets his only political ideas from watching TV," she said.

"We just heard a screaming rant from the leader of the opposition about us not being across our detail.

"Who's the chair in charge of rat dogs? I'm in charge of rat dogs and public health and safety."

"Rat dogs" refer to two rodent detection dog teams that carry out inspections of private addresses when reports of possible rodent infestations are made.

Cr Adams said proactive monitoring was undertaken at 550 sites across Brisbane, which had been identified based on historical information collected over a number of years related to rodent activity.