NATS were last night urged to simplify muddled recycling rules — as MSPs voted to fine Scots for putting trash in the wrong bins.

Lawmakers backed laws which will let local authorities slap persistent rubbish rulebreakers with fixed penalties.

Ministers say the tough measures are needed because nearly a fifth of items in recycling bins are put there wrongly.

But critics predicted more “confusion” — two years after we revealed a mishmash of waste colour codes and rules across Scotland’s 32 council areas.

We told how fed-up Scots faced using up to eight different containers amid anger over the drop-off in the frequency of bin pick-ups.

And as the Circular Economy Bill last night passed its first hurdle, ministers were slammed for failing to commit to demands for a “uniform kerbside bin collection approach” across the country.

Want to see more SNP fails? – Health Matters