It’s time to talk dirty.

By which I mean we need to do something about the filthy state of our streets.

It pains me to even think about litter, let alone write about it, but people are concerned, including Jeremy Paxman – and you wouldn’t want to argue with him.

Paxman is the patron of a group called Clean Up Britain (CLUB), and last year he told a waste and recycling conference: “We are a nation of litter louts. Britain has an enormous litter problem. It is getting worse. It’s soul-destroying.”

I know how he feels after meeting up with some friends for a socially distanced catch-up at Queen’s Park.

Residents of Swindon can rejoice in our wonderful parks and other green spaces, and – credit where it’s due – Queen’s Park looks as beautiful as ever, at the moment.

But when you sit on a bench in the park and look down at dozens of cigarette butts at your feet, your heart sinks.

You might argue that local authorities currently have better things to spend their money on than clearing up after ignorant people who have no respect for other people, nor their environment.

But living with rubbish is bad for the spirit and makes us feel powerless.

And if we truly did live in a land as pleasant as it is green, it would do so much for sagging national pride and morale.

What really puzzles me is what goes through the mind of a person when they drop litter.

We taught our kids not to do it when they were each about two years old.

All you have to do is explain to them that if you can’t find a bin, then put it in your pocket and bring it home. It’s one of the few things you probably only have to tell a child once.

I am sure our (now grown-up) children have never dropped a single piece of litter in their lives - and my daughter now even works for a large waste management company!

The good news is there are answers, and plenty of practical ideas have been proposed by CLUB.

But the bad news is their strategy is complex, and we live in a world where voters prefer so-called ‘solutions’ that can be reduced to three or four words – and ‘Keep Britain tidy’ simply won’t cut it.

The only way for Britain to clean up its act is to change people’s behaviour, but it is urgent because what every study shows is the more litter is around, the more people are likely to drop it.

So the longer you leave it, the worse it gets.

And it was disappointing to be told by CLUB that when they sent a Freedom of Information request to Swindon Borough Council as part of a survey to find out how many local authorities have issued fines to litterers, they didn’t even reply.

One thing is certain: Britain’s chronic litter problem won’t be solved by sweeping it under the carpet.