Wednesday January 28th 2026
A Glutton street cleaner in use in Linlithgow. The machine can lift rubbish from hard to reach spots on pavements and guttersm (photo from the West Lothian Council).
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Stuart Sommerville
New rules have been drawn up as part of a wider tightening up of regulations in a bid to legislate against litter louts and those who don’t clean up after their dog.
The new service standards promises more partnership with the public and, where necessary, greater enforcement to deter what is now widely recognised as anti-social behaviour by a minority.
Councillors on the Environment and Sustainability PDSP welcomed proposed rules which include encouraging the public to report dog fouling blackspots and persistent offenders.
Those who allow their dog to foul face Fixed Penalty Notices of £80. The proposals detail: “While dedicated patrols focused solely on dog fouling are not currently in place, officers will respond to intelligence-led reports by adjusting existing patrol routes when resources allow.
“Patrols are prioritised in areas with high levels of complaints or repeated offences.
“The Council relies on the support of the public to identify persistent offenders and problem areas. Reports should be as detailed as possible to assist in enforcement—ideally including times, descriptions, and any available evidence.”
Conservative Alison Adamson welcomed the plan, and its encouragement to report persistent offenders. “I would say it’s encouraging to know that there are people who will use this information and hopefully the culprits will be found.
“A fixed penalty notice of £80 will make them think twice. Can we do more to publicise this because it’s absolutely imperative we get the message out there.”
Ms Mungall detailed the wider proposals set to go before the Council’s Executive: “The Litter Prevention Action Plan (LPAP) is a key component of West Lothian Council’s commitment to creating a cleaner, greener, and more sustainable local environment and is developed in line with Scotland’s National Litter and Fly Tipping Strategy 2023-27.
“The LPAP outlines a number of targeted actions aimed at preventing litter at its source through a combination of education, infrastructure improvements, community engagement and enforcement.”
The plan will build on actions taken by the Cleaner Communities Team over the last two years to tackle litter and fly tipping such as:
– The introduction of the Don’t Waste West Lothian fly tipping campaign
– The introduction of three dedicated Glutton street cleaning teams
– Roll out of mobile CCTV cameras to deter dumping
– The introduction of smart compactor bins
– Partnership working with community litter picking groups
Ms Mungall told the meeting that the council’s performance levels currently sit below national figures. In her report she said: “West Lothian’s Statutory Performance Indicator for 2024/25 was 87.5% against a national average of 91.7%.
“This has been due to the increase in the amount of roadside litter. It is anticipated that the introduction of our new service standards, appointment of an external roads contractor and re-prioritisation of our Urban Clean Team will contribute to improved results for 2026/27.
The plan is to provide a robust, practical, and compliant approach to improving cleanliness across the county.
The report noted that the proposed service standards are designed to streamline operations and promote improved cross service working.
It set out revised frequencies for litter picking, road sweeping, and fly-tipping response times across town centres, residential areas, and rural roads.
It also clarified response times for key issues such as graffiti, dog fouling, abandoned vehicles, fly-posting, and street clutter. Importantly, these standards balance public expectations with the operational capacity of the service and available resources.
Ms Mungall told the committee: “Alongside this, the LPAP is a key step in shifting from simply reacting to litter, to preventing it at source. The draft plan aligns with Scotland’s National Litter and Fly Tipping Strategy and builds on successful actions already in place, including targeted anti-fly-tipping campaigns, dedicated street cleaning teams, mobile CCTV, replacement bins, and strong partnership working with community groups.
“Looking ahead, the draft LPAP focuses on education, behaviour change, enforcement, and community ownership, supported by improved monitoring so the council can better understand trends and target resources effectively.”
Following input from PDSP, the proposals will now go to a future meeting of West Lothian Council Executive for approval.
Councillor Susan Manion said I just want to give thanks to the voluntary organisation involved. There is a whole range of groups and individual communities who are participating. They need to be recognised, it is something we all have responsibility for.”
Councillor Adamson said: “Most people want to see enforcement. They want to see the bad people being punished and putting that message out there that we as a community don’t tolerate litter or dog mess. Hopefully we’ll have an end to this ‘I’ll chuck it wherever I feel like it’ attitude.”
Chairing the meeting, Councillor Tom Conn said: “I think from the public’s point of view this has to be welcome. I think it’s important that the public have confidence in the council dealing with issues that have at times been a bugbear.”
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