IF there's something sticky in your neighbourhood, who ya gonna call? Gum Busters!

Town hall bosses have chewed over the tacky problem of dropped gum and come up with a solution.

Staff armed with high-powered steam cleaners, costing £14,000, have hit the streets to clear up the worst of the gum.

They will spend the first eight weeks dealing with the grottiest areas, which include spots outside leisure centres, dentists' surgeries and even around litter bins.

The council has been carrying out a "streetscene review" looking at everything from litter bins and signposts to lighting. As a result, it has decided to put aside money to improve unsightly areas.

Councillor Stella Smith, executive member for the environment, said: "Many people don't realise that chewing gum makes up around five per cent of the litter on our streets.

"The sight of gum-splattered pavements is unfortunately the norm and it is notoriously difficult to remove, often because most of it is dropped in heavily-used areas that are hard to tackle during normal working hours.

"This specialist machine can be operated when pedestrians are around, and we think it will make a real difference."

Of course, Coun Walker said the only lasting solution was for people to put their used gum in the bin.