A ROW has broken out over the cleanliness of York's streets.

A new report by the GMB Union has identified the city as having the joint dirtiest streets in Yorkshire and the Humberside.

Their study, based on Audit Commission figures for 2005/06, said 22.6 per cent of York's streets were dirty.

Ruth Potter, Labour's spokeswoman for neighbourhood services at City of York Council, said: "I am not surprised by the revelations from GMB.

"We have been pressing for improved street cleaning in York for some time. Residents have complained to us many times about the poor standard of street cleaning.

"The Liberal Democrats finally listened to us when they introduced a pilot in the west area of the city just before Christmas where street cleaners used brushes and barrows to clean up.

"Lo and behold, they found that this actually helped to clean the streets better so they then rolled the system out to the rest of the suburbs of the city just before the election.

But the executive member Andrew Waller was sceptical about the report. He said: "I would refute this. York's streets are clean and the roll-out of barrow sweeping will mean that streets are even cleaner than they are.

"I would challenge the GMB and I am happy to come and show them round York.

"I think people have eyes to see when they travel round the region that York's streets are far better than many of the places mentioned by the GMB as allegedly having cleaner streets."