AMBULANCE crews in Glasgow regularly fail basic hand-washing tests, it was claimed today.

It has lead to fears of the spread of superbugs, including MRSA and C.diff.

The 'West Central Division Report Card' revealed 31% of staff didn't follow hand-washing rules in January.

In May of this year, 21% of ambulance staff failed the test.

The most recent monthly hygiene Monitoring Compliance report, for August, showed 10% did not pass.

The average pass rate from October 2013 to August 2014 was 85.5%, the lowest result in the country

The West Central Division takes in Greater Glasgow, Lanarkshire and Dunbartonshire.

Paramedics are expected to adhere to strict rules about hand-washing to prevent infections.

The Scottish Ambulance Service has a zero-tolerance approach to people who break the rules.

Scottish Conservative health spokesman Jackson Carlaw MSP warned the figures could lead to the spread of superbugs.

He said: "It is widely recognised what a terrific job paramedics do.

"However, the public expect that when it comes to hand-washing regulations there should be perfect compliance and we shouldn't have one in 10 failing to comply.

"It's well documented that hand hygiene is crucial in stopping the spread of a range of superbugs, like C.diff, as well as seasonal infections like norovirus and influenza.

"The vast majority of paramedics do take the greatest possible care to maintain strong levels of hygiene.

"There's always room for improvement though."

A Scottish Ambulance Service spokesman insisted hand-hygiene is "an absolute priority".

He said: "Specialist infection control teams monitor and audit compliance.

"The compliance rate in West Central Division in August was 90% and while these figures fluctuate throughout the year, the trend is one of overall improvement.

"There is no room for complacency in any aspect of the control of infection across the service and good practice is reinforced at every opportunity."

peter.swindon@ eveningtimes.co.uk