£9,000 bill for spending penny in Florence

TOURISTS caught urinating in the street in Florence have been hit with fines of up to £8,750 (€10,000) as Italy vows to eliminate anti-social behaviour by visitors this summer.

The fines were imposed on an 18-year-old Danish woman and a Tunisian man who were spotted relieving themselves in a 14th-century loggia full of ancient statues in Piazza della Signoria, near the Renaissance city hall.

The woman was on a school trip when she was caught by police at 2.30am. Both she and the Tunisian, from Padua, were accused of offending public decency.

A spokesman for Florence council said: “This is about ensuring tourists treat Florence in a proper manner and don’t engage in anti-social behaviour, like having sex in public or playing ball games in front of historic monuments.”

The action is not limited to Florence. Tourists in Rome are fined if they jump into the city’s fountains. Scottish rugby fans were fined when they leapt into the Trevi Fountain to celebrate their team’s win over Italy. Luigi Brugnaro, Venice’s mayor, threatened action against bad behaviour and even those who filmed it for posting on social media.