Almost 70,000 fines for virus breaches

ALMOST 70,000 fines have been handed out by police for breaches of Covid-19 laws since they came into force, with more than 6,000 issued in a single week, new figures show.

New data from the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) shows 68,952 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) were issued by forces, including 63,201 in England and 5,751 in Wales, from March 27 last year to February 14. The report said steep rises in tickets handed out after bringing in Tier Four restrictions before Christmas and the latest national lockdown in England on January 4 reflected a move towards faster police enforcement. In the week to February 11, there were 4,752 fines, down from 6,218 the week before, but higher than the first lockdown’s peak of 3,294 in Easter holiday week.

NPCC chairman Martin

Hewitt said: “It is frustrating that we still have a small number of completely defiant and irresponsible people who have no regard for the safety of themselves or others.”

The figures show 272 fines of £10,000 have been handed to organisers of mass gatherings of more than 30 people.