Campaigners are demanding action to stop mountains of rubbish turning their streets into a tip.

They say they suffered a summer of discontent as refuse services became so bad parts of Brighton and Hove have been left strewn with litter, rotting food and uncollected bin bags.

The filth was made worse by soaring temperatures.

The campaign by residents in the Clifton Street and West Hill area will be taken to Brighton and Hove City Council's environment committee tonight in an emergency motion presented by Green councillors.

The Argus reported last month how on one occasion, rubbish bags were left piled up in the street for five days before staff from the council's in-house refuse service Cityclean collected it.

Bags were ripped open by seagulls and vermin, spreading food waste and other filth across the area's streets.

Collections were 24 hours late on nine other occasions.

Residents in the area have become so dismayed by what they say is a poor service, they have started a petition demanding better organisation of refuse collections.

Green councillors are expected to present the petition's demands at tonight's meeting.

Campaigners are demanding:

A weekly refuse and street cleaning service on a regular day.

A date by which residents can be expected to consulted on new bins such as wheelie bins or Binvelopes.

A meeting between residents, Gill Mitchell, lead councillor responsible for environmental services, the management of Cityclean and ward councillors.

Simon Williams, a Green councillor in the area's ward of St Peters and North Laine, said: "City centre residents deserve a reliable street refuse collection yet many people have lost patience with the current service.

"It seems that we have been put to the back of the back of the queue compared to residents in other parts of the city."

Julian Musto, 43, a computer consultant who has lived in Clifton Street for ten years, said: "The problem is when the binmen don't turn up, then the sea-gulls and foxes split the bags open and the rubbish gets spewed everywhere.

"Up until a couple of weeks ago I never really knew what day they were coming and if the rubbish is out even for a day or so it gets messy very quickly."

Councillor Mitchell accused Councillor Williams of being more interested in making political capital than genuinely dealing with residents concerns.