‘Let’s pick up on litter message’
A Perth councillor is calling on the local authority to adopt the ‘Don’t be a tosser’ slogan to tackle the region’s litter problem.
Dealing with littering costs cash-strapped PKC a whopping £2 million a year to clean up.
York City Council recently caused a stir when it adopted the slogan as part of its eyecatching litter campaign.
Previous attempts in other parts of the country to adopt this approach have been branded as “offensive.”
It is not clear when the idea first came about but it may have originated in Australia or New Zealand.
Back in 2008, BBC Radio Suffolk launched an anti-littering campaign creating ‘Don’t be a Tosser’ posters for listeners to print off.
But in 2012 Northumberland residents got upset when a landowner used the idea, inspired by signs she had seen on a visit to Bondi Beach, to stop people dropping their rubbish on her land. A parish council branded it “inappropriate” and “offensive.”
Last month York City Council’s new signs, which ask “Why are you tossing your litter
They are blunt but they get to the heart of the selfishness of people who toss their rubbish away Cllr Peter Barrett
round here?’ then listed three reasons why a litter lout is a ‘tosser,’ went viral across social media - and caught the attention of Perth City Centre councillor Peter Barrett.
The Lib Dem member has done some research and is aware of them being used by several New Zealand municipal authorities.
He said: “There is a definite streak of antipodean directness and humour to the signs.
“They are blunt but they get to the heart of the selfishness of people who toss their rubbish away. I think they would work really well here.”
Cllr Barrett believes the “key message” of the sign to take your rubbish home “captures the community’s frustration and anger at litter louts and exposes the thoughtlessness of such behaviour.”
He has written to PKC’s greenspaces team asking them to give the signs a go.
And PKC seem receptive to giving it some consideration.
A spokesperson said: “Littering is antisocial behaviour and costs the council around £2m a year to clean up.
“It is always disappointing when people fail to dispose of their waste properly and we would urge people to bin their rubbish, or to take it home with them if no bin is available.
“We will continue to look at ways to drive this message home and are always happy to consider new ideas from the public about how we can address this issue.”