Clear-up message being aimed at wrong people

Ihave several times been verbally abused in the street, most recently last Thursday. On that occasion I had picked up a drink can dropped by a fat infant and offered it to the mother, with the suggestion that she might teach her child to place the thing in a waste bin situated not 10ft away.

Maybe she was right. Maybe I should have expletive minded my own expletive business. Maybe I should have put the expletive can in the expletive bin myself and saved her gross progeny the effort.

Maybe she was right (though I’m sure not) when she questioned the legitimacy of my birth. I am only sad that her expletives were not creative – just the same old ones we all know and love. I put the can in the bin myself. Relatively expensive, designercreated campaigns like the “Sir Litternot” one look good on paper and sit comfortably with the middle classes – whoever they may be – and with all who feel themselves to be respectable members of society, but we are the ones who, as a general rule, don’t chuck our litter down in the street for the council to clear up.

For the rest, and it is they at whom the campaign was presumably aimed, Sir Litternot has no more relevance than Andy Capp or any other cartoon character.

Anyway, we are now going to have some private enforcers – Kingdom, who will levy fines and see the job done properly.

I wonder how much cheaper it will be, hiring a private company to do the work the police should be doing as they stroll around the town. And how much cheaper will it be than creating a couple of much needed jobs locally.

These are questions Cllr Clair Bell, Ashford Borough Council cabinet member for public interaction and borough presentation (!), should be able to answer, should anyone care to ask.

‘We are the ones who, as a general rule, don’t chuck our litter down in the street’

So Saudi money is coming to Ashford – and in significant quantities, with £45 million to be invested in as-yet-unbuilt properties.

Let’s hope the Arabs are not going to find they have bought a pig in a poke.

We have heard so many times about grand schemes that have failed to come to fruition that I hope a certain cynicism may be forgiven in this instance.