A GLASGOW MSP has called for action on fly-tipping to prevent dumping on public grounds.

James Kelly, Labour MSP, asked the Scottish Government to look at giving councils more powers to deter fly-tippers.

He noted there were examples in the south and south-east of Glasgow, particularly along the River Clyde.

Mr Kelly said: “Sadly, fly-tipping is a scourge on many local communities, with areas such as the Clyde walkway suffering from people dispersing litter at sites that people enjoy using for walks and leisure."

He asked: “What action is being taken to review the powers and resources that are available to local authorities to ensure that they have an adequate toolkit available to discourage and penalise fly-tippers?”

Mhairi Gougeon, natural environment minister, said she agreed and noted an increase in complaints of the problem across the country.

She said: “We need to get a handle on how massive and wide a problem that is, so I encourage all local authorities to use the litter mapping services that I mentioned so that we can properly map where fly-tipping is taking place and get an idea of the scale of the issue.

“Fly-tipping is a massive problem for local authorities.”

She said the government was working with COSLA, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and Zero Waste Scotland. 

Ms Gougeon said better understanding will help draw up a national strategy.

She added: “Better national data will help us to develop plans.”