Church minister slams Edinburgh McDonald's for careless littering in kirkyard

Takeaway containers for McDonald’s have been found littering a kirkyard in Edinburgh.

A church minister has slammed fast-food giant McDonald’s for not keeping on top of customer’s litter after noticing packaging strewn across a kirkyard.

Peter Sutton, of The Parish Church of St Cuthbert in Princes Street, said he has noticed rubbish piling up outside the place of worship in the last few weeks since businesses started to reopen.

In a disgruntled message the minister asked McDonald’s if they were prepared to receive bags of waste delivered to their branch opposite the church after he noticed most of the packaging comes from their company.

McDonald's packaging pictured outside The Parish Church of St Cuthbert in Edinburgh

Speaking to the Evening News Mr Sutton said: “As a church we are happy to try and keep kirkyard clean but it is fighting a losing battle.

“Maybe McDonald’s could sponsor some decent permanent bins in the kirkyard to prevent this mess from happening.”

The church provides free meals on Sundays for the homeless, who make make an effort to keep the place clean and tidy.

“Our homeless friends always tidy up after themselves and like to keep the kirkyard tidy because they do see it as their home and are proud of it and how we help look after them.

"Why don’t McDonald’s employ some of the good homeless folk who live around the West End as McDonald’s litter pickers on proper contract with benefits.”

He added: “Also, it gives a really shocking impression to visitors in the heart of the city probably, being one of the most iconic locations with the Tourist Bus Hub right next to it.”

A McDonald’s spokeswoman said: “We take our responsibility around litter very seriously, which is why for over 35 years, McDonald’s restaurant teams have carried out litter patrols in local communities, collecting all litter not just McDonald’s branded packaging.

"It is therefore deeply disappointing to see a minority of our customers disposing of their rubbish so irresponsibly by littering.

"Our recent ‘Get in the Bin’ campaign aims to encourage our customers to help us tackle this problem, by taking their litter home and recycling or disposing of it responsibly.”

Adam McVey, Edinburgh City council leader said: “Our street cleansing teams are working extremely hard to keep the city clean and tidy under pressure and we need everyone to help us keep Edinburgh beautiful by binning their litter or taking it home with them to put in their own bin.

"As the city starts to get back to a ‘new normal’ I know lots of people will be out taking advantage of businesses that have reopened but we must ensure we continue to protect our environment.”

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