News

Council gets tough on litter louts

Posted on Monday 6th March 2017

Dropping litter on the streets of Newport has led to almost 1,000 people being fined by Newport City Council.

In the nine months leading up to Christmas last year, the council’s enforcement team issued 940 penalty notices.

And those who refused to pay the £75 fixed penalty notice ended up in court.

Most of the offences involved littering, but 10 dog owners were also issued with Fixed Penalty Notices, and 50 people were fined £50 each for smoking in an enclosed place.

Of those issued with notices, 620 people paid the £75 fixed penalty, with total fines of £45,560.

The 166 people who refused to pay, were prosecuted through the courts, and all either pleaded guilty or were subsequently found guilty.

As well as the fine, the courts also added costs, so offenders ended up paying substantially more than the £75 fixed penalty notice. Offenders who pleaded guilty in court faced costs of around £120 plus a victim surcharge of £30.

Those who failed to turn up at court had their cases proven in absence, and were fined around £220 plus costs of £120 and victim surcharge of £30.

Councillor Bob Poole, Cabinet Member for Regulatory Functions, said Newport City Council takes the problem of littering seriously and will pursue offenders through the courts.

“Our enforcement officers are robust in handing out fixed penalty notices to offenders so we hope people realise we will not put up with this sort of anti-social behaviour,” said Cllr Poole.

Councillor Ray Truman, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment, Sustainability and Transport, said he was delighted the hard work of the enforcement team has brought about such a good result.

“We hope this sends out a strong message that we will not tolerate littering, and urge dog owners to be responsible when dealing with their pets fouling public places. Everyone has a responsibility to keep their city clean and not pollute in this way”.

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