It’s time to clean up our act

Rubbish strewn across streets, carpets of detritus left behind in city centres, discarded packaging dumped in parks for someone else to deal with.

These are all scenes that have become too familiar during the easing of coronavirus restrictions in the UK but which have their root in a much more long-term problem — the UK’s litter epidemic.

Today we are standing up to it, and urging you to do the same, with our new campaign Don’t Trash Our Future.

The Paisley Daily Express, together with local community and information platform InYourArea. co. uk and our nationwide network of sister newspapers and websites, have teamed up with Clean Up Britain to push for changes we believe will leave no choice but for both irresponsible litter louts and the authorities who have the power to enforce the law but so often don’t to take long-lasting action.

Our campaign has two aims:

To increase the maximum punishment for littering to a £1,000 fine or 100 hours of supervised community litter picking To make it compulsory for local authorities to enforce the law on littering We are urging you to sign our petition (inyourarea.co.uk/DTOF) to see it - with the aim of reaching 100,000 signatures so we can lobby the Government to change the legislation and shed the country of its long-held reputation as a litter-plagued nation.

We’re also calling on councils to flex their muscles in the fight against rubbish and make far better use of the powers they already have available.

A Freedom of Information request sent by Clean Up Britain to 169 councils in England and Wales found the majority (56%) were issuing less than one fine per week for littering and more than two dozen (16%) don’t issue fines at all.

In a recent survey conducted by InYourArea. co. uk, more than 7,500 respondents overwhelmingly said littering has a negative effect on them and their neighbourhoods and classed it as a big problem.

Support has come from television host Gabby Logan and her husband Kenny, a former Scotland international rugby player turned broadcaster.

Together they said: “We’re urging everyone to get behind the ‘ Don’t Trash Our Future’ national anti-litter campaign, and show how much we care about our naturally beautiful country. Littering is senseless, selfish and costly to us all.

It’s only a minority of people who do it, but it negatively affects the quality of life for absolutely everyone.

“To use the sporting analogy... it’s a self-inflicted, needless, own goal. It doesn’t cost a penny to do the sociallyresponsible right thing, and put your litter in a bin. Just do it! Please.

John Read, founder of Clean Up Britain, said: “Clean Up Britain is very excited to be running the Don’t Trash Our Future campaign with InYourArea. co.uk

“We know from the countless people who contact us that there is a huge desire - from people all over the country - to try and solve the litter epidemic.

“We are all so fortunate to live in a beautiful country, but equally, it’s so depressing to see so many people littering it.

“This has to stop, as it shames Britain. “There has to be zero tolerance towards littering.

“Littering is symptomatic of a lack of pride in our local communities, and a lack of respect for other people and the environment generally.

“This campaign is about challenging and reversing these negative sentiments, and saying enough is enough.

“Let’s be grateful for what we have, take care of our country and, above all, ‘Don’t Trash Our Future’.”

Mr Read added: “The Government needs to start getting serious about confronting people who litter.

“It’s a criminal offence to litter and it needs to be treated that way.

“Fines need to be increased to a level which shows the Government - and society generally - will no longer tolerate this antisocial and selfish behaviour.

“In addition, we also need to ensure fines are a credible deterrent, by making it compulsory for councils to enforce the law, which currently it’s not.”

Journalist and television presenter Jeremy Paxman is Clean Up Britain’s patron. He said: “There is only one sustainable and effective solution to littering: changing the behaviour of people who do it. Nothing else will work.

“It pollutes the environment. It’s dangerous to humans and animals.

“It depresses people because mucky surroundings make them feel worthless. It’s expensive — councils across the UK spend over a billion pounds a year trying to clean it up.”

Depressing Fly- tipping — like this rubbish strewn over the grass verge at Leitchland Road — is an all-too familiar sight EVERYONE hates litter. And for more than 50 years, countries, cities and communities have waged war on the filthy litterbugs who shame our streets and parks. Who can forget ‘Keep Britain Tidy’? Then came ‘Don’t be a Litterbug’, ‘Be a Binner Not a Sinner’ and ‘Let’s get Bitter about Litter.’ And The Golden Skip prize goes to Australia for the crude-but-cracking ‘Don’t be a Tosser’ campaign that went worldwide. So much effort. So much creativity. Yet still so much filth and debris making lives miserable. But now, more than ever before, we can consign litter louts to the rubbish bin of history. In Your Area has nearly 4m users across the UK. We operate in, and have users in, evevery single UK postcode district. Which means we have a huge army of pepeople who care and can make things hahappen. So today, on behalf of 4m people, we say: DODON’T TRASH OUR FUTURE and we demand ththe punishment for littering is raised to a £1,000 fine or 100 hours of supervised community litter picking. And we insist that it’s compulsory for local authorities to enforce the law. How do we make this reality? Simply sign oour petition and at 100,000 signatures we wwill call for it be considered for a debate in paparliament. And with 4m voices behind us we will lobby MMPs and ministers to drive through real chchange that makes things cleaner, healthier, anand more beautiful In Your Area. Together we can win - and ensure those who don’t have respect for our streets, fields and pathways Don’t Trash our Future. ED WALKER Editor-in-Chief, InYourArea.co.uk

Support Gabby and Kenny Logan