Tourists who feed seagulls could be fined as council takes on coastal ‘scourge’

SEASIDE RESIDENTS and holidaymakers who feed seagulls could find themselves being fined under new council powers being introduced to stop the birds attacking people for food.

People who feed the often aggressive animals could receive an £80 fine as part of Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) issued by East Devon District Council.

The feeding ban follows debate about how to tackle what has been described as a “scourge” on Britain’s seaside resorts.

In 2015, then Prime Minister David Cameron said a “big conversation” was needed about the threat from seagulls, and he recalled ham once being stolen from a sandwich by the birds.

While gulls are an important part of the coastal environment, their behaviour can be problematic, said East Devon District councillor Iain Chubb.

“You like to see the birds, it’s a nice part of the landscape, but you just don’t want them to be aggressive,” he said.

The fines will be aimed at addressing habitual feeders as well as cafes and restaurants which do not dispose of their waste food properly, he added.

Similar measures had been debated previously in Scarborough, where a taskforce was set up by the borough council in 2015.

Coun Godfrey Allanson, who chaired the body, said that they had considered all options but rejected the idea of issuing fines.

He said the focus was on educating residents and tourists, combined with the use of hawks to scare the gulls away and removing eggs and nests from buildings.

“I think issuing fines would lead to very bad publicity,” he said. “It would be a very long way down the line.”

Coun Chubb described the new measure in East Devon as a “final backstop”, adding: “There aren’t going to be the police out looking for people throwing chips at birds, that’s for sure.”

In February, MPs also debated the issue ahead of breeding season, warning that pensioners had been among those attacked by the birds.