CALLS have been made for public toilets in Otley to be closed after used needles and pornographic messages were found littering the floor.

Otley businessman Ivor Hughes says the public conveniences at Cross Green have become a magnet for drug users and gay men.

He says the toilets - a stone's throw from the Civic Centre - give a bad impression to tourists and visitors and they should either be closed down on a night or cleaned up more regularly.

But the council says the toilets are cleaned on a daily basis and any complaints of improper use are reported to the police.

Mr Hughes said: "I'm broad-minded but things have really got out of hand. I often walk past the toilets and see piles of used needles, I usually stamp on them and clear them away, it would be so easy for children to pick them up."

Mr Hughes, owner of nearby Mayfair Antiques, added that the inside of the men's toilets were covered with obscene graffiti and that he regularly found used drug needles and syringes on the grassed area outside.

"I don't normally go in because my shop is nearby, but the walls are covered with messages and it's just not the sort of thing young boys should have to read. I even came across a piece of cardboard which had been left just outside with someone's written fantasy about a young Asian boy all over it.

"And if a child picked up one of those needles, it could be nasty."

Mr Hughes said he believed any tourist who visited the toilets would be shocked.

"A lot of people visiting the town or going to the civic centre will use those toilets and it's just not on."

When a Wharfedale Observer reporter visited the toilets, he found obscene graffiti daubed all over the walls, some of which dated back to 1998. In both the men's and women's toilets, some seats were missing and there was no toilet paper.

Mr Hughes claimed that the door on the disabled toilets had been forced in the past and he also said that there had been vandalism outside the toilets, with the glass in the telephone kiosk smashed at least three times in the past year. A school sign had also been uprooted in the past.

"This is a real haven for anti-social behaviour and homo-erotic fantasies. Something needs to be done," he said.

A spokeswoman for Leeds City Council said: "The public toilets at Cross Green are cleaned and inspected on a daily basis and any damage, faults and problems are reported. Toilet rolls are also replaced daily.

"The toilets are checked weekly by a supervisor to ensure that work ordered has been carried out satisfactorily. The most recent inspection showed that one toilet seat was damaged and that all the toilet rolls had been broken off. Replacements have been ordered and will be fitted as soon as possible.

"Unfortunately, graffiti is a big problem in most public toilets. Small areas can be tackled by the regular cleaning teams but for bigger areas a specialist team is called in.

"Closing these toilets overnight is not possible as Leeds City Council is committed to providing a 24-hour resource in this location. If we receive any complaints about the improper use of public toilets, we refer the matter to the police who have the appropriate powers to take action."