Officers fined 27 dog walkers �40

He was among hundreds of litter louts and dog walkers fined up to �50 or issued with a warning in Glasgow.

The Clean Glasgow campaign uncovered 599 dog fouling offences and 763 littering cases in nine months.

Robert O'Neill, director of environmental services, said the cases were the "tip of the iceberg" and described littering as "avoidable".

Between April and December, enforcers accompanied by two dedicated police officers warned 572 dog walkers and issued 27 with a �40 penalty.

Public education

Littering cases led to 114 warnings and 649 fixed penalties of �50.

City "dirtbusters" cleared more than 5,000 sites of litter.

Mr O'Neill said: "We know we can't fine our way out but we must tell people so they think twice.

"Unless we get help from and educate the public we can never have the resources to clean the streets of Glasgow."

Glasgow City Council has placed a bid for funding with the Scottish Executive to build a new education centre in Polmadie.

The local authority also dealt with 1,408 complaints of discarded syringes over the period.

Mr O'Neill added: "It is a problem that is not going away and there are real problems over needles we can't see."