A call has gone out to activists on both sides of the independence referendum campaign to act in a responsible manner.
The appeal came from Moray Council after it was revealed the local authority was facing a £5000 bill for removing campaign stickers from road signs in the region.
Council officials say that strong adhesive used to place the stickers is proving difficult to remove – with protective laminated layers on the signs being pulled off with the stickers when staff attempt to remove them.
Mark Palmer, who will be the referendum returning officer in Moray when the vital vote takes place on September 18, commented: “This leaves the sign vulnerable to water ingress and corrosion, which will shorten its life considerably.”
So far around 25 Yes Scotland stickers have been removed from road markers in Moray at a cost, the Council says, of around £350 each.
Councillor Douglas Ross, a Better Together campaigner, said that his experience was that every sticker he had seen so far throughout Moray and the Highlands were for the Yes campaign.
Fellow Better Together campaigner, independent councillor Chris Tuke, insisted that placing stickers on road signs was “criminal damage”.
A spokesman for the Yes campaign in Moray said: “Moray has a huge amount of campaigning activity going on and we are very much aware of the rules that need to be followed.
“There are many people acting individually and we would urge campaigners on both sides to be enthusiastic and act appropriately.”
As the long campaign enters its final weeks it is expected that activity from campaigners on both sides of the debate will increase in intensity.