A campaigner claims he has been "banned" from directly contacting officials at Renfrewshire Council over the current state of a Paisley cemetery.

Desmond Barr, who formed Friends of Hawkhead Cemetery group last year, said he had been accused of sending too many emails about the issue to staff working for the local authority.

Concerns raised by the businessman have included getting rid of the moss and weeds on paths in the graveyard, as well as headstones being laid flat on the ground by council staff.

Mr Barr has also submitted enquiries about the local authority's grass-cutting schedule and equipment trials at the cemetery.

He said: "I am fully committed to the campaign to improve Hawkhead Cemetery for all the families of those who are buried there.

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"The council will say I have sent them too many emails, but this is because on many occasions the replies I received either didn't answer the questions we were asking, or they led to even more queries from the group.

"If the council would only do what is right and keep the cemetery in a proper state of maintenance and repair, then I wouldn’t need to be sending emails to the council."

Martin McLister, of Friends of Hawkhead Cemetery, said Mr Barr had "campaigned tirelessly" for improvements to the graveyard on behalf of families who have loved ones buried at Hawkhead.

He added: "However, there are still several important issues unresolved regarding the state of Hawkhead Cemetery and Des is quite right to continue campaigning for further improvements on our behalf.

"Des is our nominated spokesperson and is the person who should contact the council on behalf of the group.

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"This attack on Des is an attack on all the members of this group in the hope that we will be silenced.

"The council officials might not like that we are campaigning for improvements to Hawkhead Cemetery, but trying to silence Des won't stop us from continuing to call for these much-needed improvements."

A Renfrewshire Council spokesperson said: "We have invested significantly in improvements at Hawkhead Cemetery and work hard to maintain all Renfrewshire cemeteries, so they remain welcoming places for people to remember their loved ones.

"We are happy to consider feedback from any individuals or groups on how best to do this and these should be raised through our official channels to be considered fully.

"A letter asking Mr Barr to follow this process was issued after officers were unable to consider the high volume of requests submitted to individual officers over a very short period of time."