AN election candidate says he has reported Inverclyde Council to the police for allegedly stealing campaign banners.

Alba Party representative Chris McEleny, running for the Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West seat in the upcoming poll, has called for the local authority to return the material following the reported 'theft'.

Mr McEleny - a former Gourock councillor - claimed that the council threatened him with a fine earlier this week after he placed pro-independence banners across the Inverclyde area.

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According to the candidate, the authority had claimed that it was forbidden to display campaign banners on council property during the pre-election period, known as purdah.

However, Mr McEleny said that he informed the council that the election period will not start until the dissolution of parliament, expected to occur at the end of this month.

He said: "I was first made aware of an issue when the Labour leader of the council took to social media to complain about the banners, and it was highlighted that the SNP may have submitted a formal complaint to have the pro-independence banners removed.

“Inverclyde Council first banned the display of election materials during election periods in the run-up to the 2014 Scottish independence referendum as the No campaign didn’t have enough activists to display as much campaign material as the Yes campaign.

“However, they do not have a policy that covers in between election periods. I would welcome if they did produce such a policy but in the interim those trying to promote the democratic process shouldn’t be subject to the apparent theft of their property.

“I am calling on Inverclyde Council to return the banners and not to keep them seized during the election which would effectively prevent pro-independence messaging being on display to the public in the run-up to the general election.”