Small risk of a fine for city litterers

CARDIFF Council has issued just 184 fines for littering in the space of a year - compared with around 12,000 in Bristol.

Figures have revealed Cardiff Council issued around 15 fixed penalty notices for littering on average per month over the past year - while Bristol manages around 1,000.

Litter is regularly left strewn across Cardiff city centre following major events, and the state of many streets across the capital has made headlines as angry residents report discarded household waste.

Cardiff Council says it adopts a ‘zero tolerance’ approach to littering but has an ‘education first’ policy to tackling the issue.

Councillor Michael Michael, Cardiff Council’s cabinet member for clean streets and recycling, said: “Most of us want to live in a city that is clean and a city we can all take pride in and it’s the few who ruin it for the many.

“We need to use citizen power to make clear to anyone that litters that it’s just not acceptable.

“As a city we need to adopt a zero-tolerance approach. It’s not all about the council and it shouldn’t all be about fines. We all have a responsibility to say enough is enough.

“Now, that doesn’t mean to say we won’t fine people, we do, and we are looking at regulations and laws on littering to see what else we can do, but our approach is education first and enforcement as a follow up.”

In Cardiff, council-employed officers have the power to issue fixed penalty notices of £80 for littering.

But in Bristol, the council has used private company Kingdom to employ officers with the power to issue fines for littering throughout the city.

The majority of offences picked up by the officers - dubbed Bristol’s ‘litter police’ - relate to dropped cigarette butts.

Councillor Michael added: “Bristol, I believe, have taken the approach of bringing in a company to seek out litterers and people who drop cigarette butts or leave them on top of bins.

“I’m not saying that’s a right or wrong approach. In the end it’s about changing people’s habits and we will have to look at the results to see what works best, because that’s what most of us want, a cleaner city that we can all take pride in.”

The council’s Love Where You Live campaign works with community groups on litter picks, and in with schools and universities to educate young people to take pride in the city, councillor Michael added.