A fine mess or a job well done?

Unless the single dog fouling fine dished out by Sunderland City Council was for £1million we doubt it will act as a deterrent to the majority of offenders.

Certainly, news that since April 2017 only one fine has been issued for dog fouling has not been greeted with much enthusiasm by opposition councillors.

Conservative group leader Coun Robert Oliver has gone as far as suggesting we need to be dishing out ‘thousands’ like our friends on the banks of the Tyne.

“More fines are needed on the scale of Newcastle,” he said, “where thousands are given out every year and the message gets round and the streets are cleaner.” He may have a point. A single dog fouling fine will hardly have rogue dog walkers running scared.

And while we can’t confirm the how much that fine was for, it’s likely to be in the region of £50 ... not a whopping £1million.

But we perhaps need to look at the bigger picture.

Dog fouling is a pain and it is an ignorant few spoiling the environment for the many.

The suggestion however that the problem is being ignored, couldn’t be further from the mark.

While an avalanche of fines has not happened, there have been plenty of warnings dished out.

There is more than one way to skin a rabbit. The softly softly approach can work.

As we reveal today, more than 400 warning letters have been handed out and dog walkers educated in person by council staff.

Rather than taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut, on dog fouling the fines are a weapon of last resort.

The effectiveness of the city dog fouling policy must not be judged by fine revenue, but by the people living in the community.

Over to you...