'Dozens of headstones have been condemned by the council as unsafe'

Officials say that any memorials deemed to be of high risk will be made safe immediately.

The issue came to light after a man who had been paying his respects at Port Glasgow Cemetery contacted the Telegraph

He said: "Dozens of headstones have been condemned by the council as unsafe and either had a notice tied to them or they were laid flat.

"Some of the stones are fairly new, and it wasn't all old ones.

"Thankfully ours was fine, but I was very apprehensive as I approached it.

"Surely they've informed the plot owners and not just left it for them to discover when they next visit?"

He said: "I imagine it is new rules after that little boy was killed in Glasgow by a gravestone falling on him, but the way the council has done this seems rather crass."

A spokesman for Inverclyde Council said all efforts were made to contact lair owners prior to making headstones safe.

He told the Telegraph: "We check our records to establish if we have updated details of the current lair owner and we inform them by letter – twice – that the memorial is unsafe and work is required.

"If we receive no response we will make the memorial safe.

"For a memorial or lair holder we know cannot be contacted we will make the memorial safe."

The council says owners have been happy with the measures that have been carried out.

Their spokesman added: "We have had extremely positive feedback from lair-owners and everyone who needs to be informed has been informed."