Thousands of fines for flouting lockdown
MORE than 9,000 fines have been issued for flouting Covid-19 lockdown rules as police warn people will get “restless” stuck at home with summer approaching.
Data released by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) yesterday shows 299 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) have been recorded by forces in Wales between March 27 and April 27, while 8,877 were issued in England over the same period.
Deputy chief constable Sara Glen said reports of anti-social behaviour more than doubled to around 215,000 in the four weeks to April 26, compared to about 106,000 in the same period last year, with the rise believed to be linked to social distancing breaches.
But she said enforcement of the government’s restriction of movement regulations remains relatively low with 194,000 coronavirus-related reports to police and just 0.02% of the population issued with a fine.
NPCC chairman Martin Hewitt said police face a different challenge when regulations are relaxed and more people are allowed out of their homes.
“There’s an inevitability that as the weeks progress, this is harder for people and we are moving into warmer weather and I think everyone would accept that,” he said.
“I think it’s inevitable that people will get restless.
“This is now quite an extended period of time. This is hard on everybody adapting their lives.
“We would assess that over the weekend we sensed across the country a little bit more traffic on the roads and a few more people out and about.
“But having said all of that, we are still seeing the same level of compliance from people.”
Police have been given powers to hand out a £60 penalty, that is reduced to £30 if paid within two weeks, for breaches of the lockdown rules, with the fine doubled for each repeat offence up to a £960 maximum.
Of the 43 regional police forces in Wales and England, Thames Valley Police has recorded the highest number of fines, with 649, while Warwickshire issued the fewest, with just 22.