THE town’s politicians should take a tour of Radcliffe’s flytipping hotspots in a bid to make the town cleaner.

That’s the view of one resident who has laid down the gauntlet after saying he has made a formal complaint to Bury Council about cleanliness in Radcliffe.

The man, who did not want to be named, said: “I will challenge any one of Radcliffe’s politicians to come and meet me and have a tour of our little town and some of the hotspots, so they can see for themselves how bad it actually is.

“Despite numerous reports over the past year or so, I am not seeing any improvement in the condition of the cleanliness of the town.

“It is heartbreaking to have to walk my children through this filth and it makes me feel downright ashamed of the town I was fourth generation born and raised in.”

The resident cites a lack of enforcement of penalties for owners who let their dogs foul public areas, a slow response to flytipping complaints and a refusal to not empty overfull bins as points Bury Council need to improve on.

Some of the land in question is unadopted, and therefore not Bury Council’s responsibility, but that of the landowners or residents to clear rubbish from it.

Radcliffe East Cllr Nick Parnell said he was “exceptionally disappointed” with the amount of flytipping and litter dropping in certain parts of Radcliffe.

He said: “I will arrange to go on a tour with this resident and a senior officer from the waste management department to review the hotspots. That said, this is as much an issue for the community to deal with as it is the council.

“At a time when the council’s budget will be cut by almost 50 per cent by the government we all need to work harder to keep our town clean from general littering.

“We also need to be vigilant in respect of flytippers so they can be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”

In a response to the resident, Waste Enforcement Officer Kim Griffiths said a new team has been created to address bin problems in the town.

She said: “Over the coming months will be concentrating on areas with the greatest need for reminders and enforcement action.”