ON-THE-SPOT FINES ISSUED BY AREA

Rawtenstall 820; Haslingden 537; Bacup 260; Rising Bridge 106; Waterfoot 64; Whitworth 52; Stacksteads 43; Newchurch 14; Cloughfold 8; Helmshore 7; Crawshawbooth 4; Britannia 2; Shawforth 2; Loveclough 2; Edenfield 1; Sharneyford 1 penalties issued declining from a peak of 321 in the first month of operations to a low of just 112 in August 2019.

There were also large geographical disparities, with 820 fines issued in Rawtenstall, compared to a total of just 12 in Helmshore, Crawshawbooth and Edenfield combined.

Coun Hughes said: “In terms of the figures there was a big impact at the beginning and it’s plateaued and, if we’re honest, that’s where we are expecting it to stay.

“You’ve got to think of the wider picture.

“The biggest areas of footfall are going to be the areas where the most litter is dropped.

“Currently it doesn’t cost the council anything - but equally it doesn’t bring anything in.

“We need to reassess that and make sure that we are happy with that.

“There is an opportunity to get a percentage of that income generation.

“What we were very clear on was that this wasn’t about getting a revenue stream for the council, this was about sorting out the real issue of litter on our streets.

“That still is the priority. “If we do go down a road of taking a percentage, we need to look at how can that money be used to reinvest into our communities.”

He said he was aware of concerns about the potential for ‘underhand’ tactics by private litter enforcement officers, but said he had no knowledge of any such problems in Rossendale.

He said: “That isn’t acceptable practice if somebody has been followed or purposely victimised, and we will investigate that if it’s reported.

“We haven’t had that

●● Coun Steve Hughes, Rossendale council’s litter enforcement chief sort of complaint.

“The track record of the organisation speaks volumes.

“We do regular checks to make sure this stuff doesn’t happen.”