Charity calls for action on ‘dirty communities’

One million Scots are living in “dirty communities” blighted by an increase in litter, graffiti and flytipping, according to a report bytheenvironmentalcharity Keep Scotland Beautiful (KSB).

Warning that standards had reached their lowest point in more than a decade, the report – which is based on data from more than 14,000 surveys of council areas across Scotland – also found that the most deprived neighbourhoods had been worst hit by a decline in local environmental quality.

Senior figures at the charity have called for action at national and local levels to reverse “declining standards and neglect”.

Blaming the trend on a range of factors, KSB chief executive Derek Robertson said: “This national decline has been caused by the perfect storm of austerity, unsustainable consumption, lack of civic pride and concern, and perhaps an increase in irresponsible behaviour.

“It is clear that the current disjointed approach is simply not working.”