HERITAGE enthusiasts are demanding action over the scourge of graffiti.

The Brighton Society, a group aimed at conserving and improving the city, is once again asking the city council to remove tagging.

A spokesman from the society said: “It has been about four months or so since we put in the request to the council to have the shelters along Brighton seafront cleaned – and they still haven’t been done.

“I think there has been one attempt to clean one of them since we asked them about it but this just shows there has been no improvement.”

He said the shelters are part of the heritage of the city and should be the centre of attention when it comes to removing graffiti.

He said: “It’s almost ironic because the taggers seem to attack the older shelters and not the modern ones, and it’s the heritage ones we are trying to protect.”

Members of the Brighton Society are worried about residents’ views and the perception people get when they visit the city.

They said the shelters on the seafront were “shabby, filthy and neglected”

The spokesman said: “People will just think that this city is not looking after itself and just running itself into the ground. I am for the public realm and we are not doing enough to support it.

“I worry the old saying ‘if I say it’s art it’s art’ has crept into the public’s psyche and it makes excuses for what’s on these heritage buildings.”

Councillor Robert Nemeth agreed with the society.

He said: “It is especially frustrating for those of us who volunteer in community clean-up days to see the council not upholding its side of the bargain.

“The Brighton Society is right to highlight the distinct lack of effort that goes into nipping the problem in the bud right across the city.

“Tagging and petty vandalism generally is a real kick in the teeth to those who care about our precious shared spaces.”

A council spokesman said: “Cuts to council funding means we have a limited amount to spend on graffiti removal and at present we are targeting hot spots and offensive graffiti.

“As the Brighton Society knows, the council has a detailed and innovative strategy for how we are going to tackle the graffiti scourge.

“This involves community groups, the police, young people and even taggers themselves.

“We will be contacting the society soon to learn how it can get involved in delivering the strategy and help us tackle the graffiti menace.”