by PAUL RODGER

THERE have been calls for the council to take action to stop dog owners let their pets foul city pavements and parks.

People believe fouling is 'a major problem' and more needs to be done after it was revealed Glasgow is owed £90,000 in unpaid fouling fines.

The Evening Times reported how the city council handed out 2,547 Fixed Penalty Notices (FPN) last year - 67% of the total 3,781 issued across the whole of Scotland.

In Glasgow, the total value of fines issued was £143,320, and yet only £54,275 has been collected by the council, just slightly more than a third.

Claudia Foxcroft, 28, is an admin assistant from Partick. She said: “I definitely feel around the city it’s a major problem.

"Dog owners aren’t ensuring that they’re looking after the area for other people around them and this is a big issue. People almost need to have more fear instilled in order to pay these fines. The only way to sort this issue out is to either have fines on the spot or take serious action to push them to not continue this behaviour again.”

Sixty-five-year-old William Boyle, a retiree from the city centre, said: “I’m not sure whether they should take them to court, or maybe give them a warning instead of fining them.

"Glasgow City Council waste a lot of money, they don’t clean the streets and the pavements are a disgrace. £90,000 is nothing really, it’s a drop in the ocean.”

Melanie Stewart, 57, is a nurse from the West End. She said: “I think that everybody should pick up their dog mess. Sometimes you see in bigger dogs fouling but people don’t seem to be picking it up.

"I don’t see anybody out and about fining, I know that happens in England quite a lot. All the parks are used by visitors and children and you can get diseases from dog fouling.”

Rob Dougall, 34, a bank worker from the south side, said it was "an awful lot of money that people hadn't paid."

He added: “It’d be nice if we could have clean streets again. The council should be doing something instead of just talking about taking action.”

Kim McFarlane, 28, a jewellery store assistant from the city centre, said: “I think it’s terrible, the place looks disgusting.

"I take the dogs down to Glasgow Green and there’s barely any bins down there. It could be good if the council provided bags as well but I do think people should be buying them themselves, they’re not expensive.”

Steve Mitchell, 60, a builder from Anderston, said: “There’s too many ignorant people about. The council should fine them or take them to court – that should stop them.”