Constant noise, verbal harassment and "low-level bullying" are three forms of antisocial behaviour blighting people's lives in Renfrewshire, a council candidate has claimed.
Andy Doig, standing for re-election in Johnstone North and the surrounding villages, has called out the "truly dreadful" conduct that has swept across his ward and others in the last five years.
He said society should "do more" to tackle it, urging Renfrewshire Council to build on the recent antisocial behaviour (ASB) strategy by considering a further review.
Doig commended the local authority for "beefing up" its procedures, but has put forward a motion for Thursday's full council meeting.
He wants to see the powers of community wardens strengthened in the fight against antisocial behaviour, requesting the council examines the "best practice" of its peers on this front.
Doig said: "I think what we want to do here is really send out a signal to anti-social elements in our town centres in particular - but not exclusively - that we're not going to stand for this behaviour any longer.
"Too many people's lives are blighted by this behaviour.
"There's been some truly terrible cases of anti-social behaviour in Johnstone town centre in the past five years that have come to my attention.
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"It's been persistent and consistent - noise harassment, sometimes even verbal harassment, just unacceptable behaviour.
"With the best will in the world, the housing officers have tried to tackle that but it's very, very difficult.
"I think we need to have more community wardens, who have got more powers, if they're in the community, to actually deal with this behaviour as it happens.
"It's very difficult to deal with it once the horse has bolted."
The response to antisocial behaviour is delivered by Renfrewshire Council, working with relevant partners through the community safety partnership - which includes the likes of Police Scotland and Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
The ASB strategy, agreed at the Communities, Housing and Planning Policy Board last month, said that overall incidents reported to the council and police in the last three years had reduced.
However, the report did warn: "When it occurs, anti-social behaviour has a serious impact on the lives of our residents and a negative impact on communities within Renfrewshire."
The strategy also covers issues such as housing related antisocial behaviour and prevention and early intervention.
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