ANYONE who complains that Brighton is dirtier now than it has ever been either has a woefully bad memory or arrived five minutes ago.

Back in the bad old days, the dustmen were just about to strike or were already striking. Their unions, run by bright young men, were dirty streets ahead of the council’s starchy officers or ancient committee chairmen.

If you saw a dustman out after 1pm, he was either playing golf or else doing his second job. There was an unofficial agreement that collecting household refuse was a mornings only occupation.

There were no plastic bags and plenty of coal fires so most dustbins were coated with a foul smelling sludge consisting of wet ash and rancid bits of meat. It stuck like glue and was almost impossible to dislodge.

Dustmen had to carry these heavy metal health hazards and suspend them over the cart in the vain hope that most contents above the sludge would go in there. Usually they did not.

Street sweeping was carried out on weekdays during the daytime only. So if there were a fine summer’s evening or a busy weekend, the town would be awash with litter including some that had been placed in overflowing bins.

There were additional hazards. The parks were full of dogs’ mess and when people in Queen’s Park tried to flag each one to draw attention to the poo, they gave up after finding more than a thousand.

In neighbouring Hove, the council collected half a ton each week from parks although who weighed it has never been made clear.

The beaches were regularly covered with oil discharged from passing ships in the Channel, often the only sign they were there. The consistency ranged from a light liquid to great lumps the size of cow pats.

Two factors served to worsen the problem. One was an army of urban foxes which found rich pickings in the unprotected bins. The other was seagulls, displaced from neighbouring cliffs, and with beaks made for tearing open packages of food.

Sheepcote Valley, where all the Brighton rubbish found a home, was an open tip with litter flying about in the constant breeze. Totters who made money out of muck touted for business outside iodide. It was a relief when the site was restored as downland.

Brighton has particular problems with refuse. It is a popular resort, so people come here in droves and often leave their litter behind. It has more food outlets than Manchester and is second only to London.

A high proportion of households consist of students and other youngsters who rent rooms. They have little interest in the resort, so feel it is OK to dump rubbish there, and they don’t always know which day refuse is collected from their neighbourhood. This matters in terraced homes where bins have to be brought through for collection.

Brighton is also one of the windiest cities in Britain and rubbish does fly about widely during great gales.

Despite these inherent difficulties, councils of sundry complexions worked hard over the years to tackle the refuse problem. There have been tremendous improvements.

Wheelie bins are usually impregnable, even to sharp-toothed wildlife. Modern dustcarts can pick them up mechanically.

Street sweepers operate during nearly all daylight hours and there are special collections on beaches and shopping centres.

A fair amount of rubbish is recycled although Green Brighton has regularly been outshone by Tory Wealden where it is easier for people to bring out their bins.

Some problems remain. Industrial relations between the council and manual workers are not good.

The most damaging incident during the last four years when the Green Party formed a minority administration was when the binmen went on strike and mountains of refuse soon appeared in the streets.

Councillor Warren Morgan, the new council leader, knows this.

His party is in theory closer to the trade unions than the others. But Labour is anxious not to be seen as a pushover.

The policy and resources committee meets tomorrow to discuss a whole host of proposals including new solar powered litter bins that compact waste.

There will be efforts to improve recycling, more litter collecting machines and a new collection service for businesses.

The council also intends to get tough with offenders and bring them to court in some cases which will act as a warning to others.

It sounds like common sense, but keeping Brighton clean is one of the most intractable problems on the council’s agenda.

Education is also needed so that children grow up knowing that it’s better to put waste in a bin than carelessly drop it in the street.

Real energy will be need to make progress to make sure new plans do not land up in a recycling bank as so many have in the past.