Dirty windows or feeding birds could land you with council fine
‘A patchwork of vague, absurd law’
PLAYING music loudly, allowing dogs off leads, drinking alcohol in public and even selling lucky heather are now crimes punishable with fines under Victorian-style laws brought in by councils.
Failing to clean windows, skateboarding, swearing and feeding birds are among other activities also being penalised across the country in what critics say is a drive to restrict freedom.
Campaigners claim ‘busybody’ powers introduced in the 2014 Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act had created a patchwork of criminal law.
They say that Public Spaces Protection Orders, which allow town halls to target anti-social behaviour at a local level, mean an activity that is illegal in one street may not be in the next.
Ministers insist the orders – similar to an Asbo – are to curb anti- social behaviour, such as spitting and aggressive begging.
But the rise in the number of PSPOs has raised concerns from the Manifesto Club, which opposes excessive regulation, that they are a ‘ blank cheque’ for the arbitrary use of power.
In total, 152 of 348 (44 per cent) of local authorities in England and Wales have at least one order in place. Anybody flouting the orders is liable for a fine, normally ranging from £70 to £100, issued by a police officer, police community support officer, council worker or private security guard employed by the town hall.
Figures uncovered using Freedom of Information requests showed 1,906 fines were imposed last year – up from the 470 issued in 2015. Between March 2016 and June 2017, ten councils passed new orders banning swearing and foul language, usually without providing definitions, making them a de facto ‘language police’, said the campaign group.
In Brighton, anyone using a portable barbecue on the beach could be penalised if they refuse to let it to be put out. In South- ampton, 30 fines of £100 were levied against homeless people for begging in 2016. In Oxford it is now a crime to enter a tower block if you are under 21 unless you live there or are visiting a resident.
In June 2016, the driver of a Mercedes was fined £100 by Kensington and Chelsea Council in London for ‘playing loud bhangra music’, while in the same month a motorist was penalised for ‘performing stunts (filming)’. Meanwhile, in Cambridge 18 fines were issued to people for advertising or touting a punt tour.
Council bosses have also tried to ban pigeon feeding and taking dogs off their lead, says the Manifesto Club. Director Josie Appleton said: ‘Councils were at first slow to use PSPOs, but now the powers are being whipped out in response to a wide variety of local disputes or problems.
‘The result is a patchwork of vague, absurd criminal law...’
Liberal Democrat peer Lord Clement- Jones said it was ‘utterly alarming’ that the powers were restricting freedom of expression ‘ in an unprecedented way’.
But Simon Blackburn, chairman of the Local Government Association’s safer and stronger communities board, said that PSPOs were an ‘effective way’ of tackling ‘persistent anti- social behaviour problems raised by local residents and businesses’.