The council has been urged to ditch “unhygienic” purple bin bags amid claims they make the district look unsightly.

Complaints have long-been made about the sacks, which are used by residents who have too much rubbish for their wheelie bins, or do not have the space to keep one.

But now, city councillor Jeanette Stockley is calling for them to be replaced with dedicated bin stores.

She has reported seeing soiled nappies and rotten food among the waste spilling from the bags and strewn across pavements.

“They’re an eyesore – I hate them,” said the Conservative councillor, who represents Beltinge.

“Sometimes there are so many piled up waiting to be collected.

“It’s not very good for visitors to the district to see. Pedestrians often stop when they see them to say ‘this is disgusting and awful’.

“Children could fall into the rubbish from these sacks, which could even contain sharp items like broken glass.”

Cllr Stockley believes the local authority should replace the sacks with enclosed stores to prevent seagulls and vermin from chewing through the bags.

“I definitely want something more hygienic than this,” she said. “The seagulls are always going to rip these bags open.

“It would be far better if we had wooden buildings or sheds for people who can’t have a wheelie bin to put their rubbish into.

“It’d be out of sight, contained and the bins would be kept together – that seems like a much more sensible idea to me.”

She added that a number of councillors have voiced their support for her idea.

However, Canterbury City Council spokesman Leo Whitlock says research into bin stores shows they “could create their own problems”.

“They can attract fly-tipping, and recycling rates drop while contamination increases,” he said.

“The council has investigated whether seagull-proof bags could be the answer but found they posed as many problems as they solved, including an increase in the cost of waste collections.

“If a resident who uses purple sacks now believes they have room for a wheelie bin, we would be happy to help them.”

The purple sacks are sold in rolls of 13 by the council for £2.35. Properties on the council’s list for the bin bags receive two free rolls every three months.