“Dirty” and “grubby” telephone boxes are a blight on a city centre, local people calling for their replacement say.

Critics of the phone boxes in Newport city centre say they want to see the vanadalised and unkempt boxes swapped for provider BT’s street hubs, which offer free ultra-fast Wi-Fi, phone calls and phone charging.

Michael Enea, a political blogger and local campaigner for the Conservative party, said one booth was “covered in dirt, muck and moss”, adding it was “absolutely apalling”.

BT, which is responsible for the upkeep of its telephone boxes, declined to comment.

Newport council, which maintains the public spaces in the city centre, said it had “no powers” to remove the phone boxes, adding it had previously complained to BT.

The hubs, which consist of 75-inch display screens in high foot-fall areas, are currently installed in Cardiff, Swansea and other parts of Newport.

Mr Enea said he wanted to see the street hubs place installed as part of a wider refurbishment of the city centre.

“This is what visitors see when they come to Newport city centre. We need radical improvements,” he said.

“When you go in there everyday you become accustomed to what it looks like but, when you’re a visitor and it’s all new to you, you will get to notice things which are dirty, grubby and grimy.

“We’ve got to really freshen up the city centre.”

Jewellery shop owner Susan Priest said “no one uses” the booth on the junction of Llanarth Street, where her business is, and John Frost Square.

“It’s terrible and it needs replacing,” she said.

“I saw it the other day and thought it looked like a right state.

“It’s like a sore thumb.”

A council spokesperson said: “Phone boxes and street hubs are the responsibility of BT to maintain and look after.

“The council has no powers to remove phone boxes, and is not responsible for their maintenance.

“We have previously written to BT to complain about the lack of maintenance of phone boxes within the city, but ultimately carrying out that maintenance is for them to do.”