Fakenham woman ordered to pay £215 in litter fines and costs

Ms Linda Toy of Fakenham has this week pleaded guilty to littering and was ordered by Magistrates to pay a £100 fine, £100 prosecution costs and £15 victim surcharge. The offence related to dropping a cigarette end on Norwich Street, Fakenham, in November 2011.

Ms Linda Toy of Fakenham has this week pleaded guilty to littering and was ordered by Magistrates to pay a £100 fine, £100 prosecution costs and £15 victim surcharge. The offence related to dropping a cigarette end on Norwich Street, Fakenham, in November 2011.

Environmental Protection Officers, who were patrolling Fakenham at the time, witnessed the offence and offered Ms Toy the opportunity to discharge her liability to prosecution by payment of an £80 Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN). Ms Toy declined the offer to pay the FPN and was subsequently prosecuted by North Norfolk District Council for the offence of littering.

In the year to March 2012 North Norfolk’s Environmental Protection Team has served 36 FPNs, of which 25 were for cigarette-related littering offences. This makes 70% of FPNs served attributable to smoking litter. Clearance of litter through street cleansing costs the Council over a million pounds each year, on top of which hundreds of dissatisfied residents complain to NNDC about litter problems in their area annually.

Commenting on the decision, Cllr Trevor Ivory, the Cabinet Member for Legal Services said, “North Norfolk is a beautiful part of the country and the Council spends over £1m a year on street cleaning to help keep our communities looking great. I therefore get very angry when people behave so disrespectfully and I am not alone – litter is one of the biggest sources of complaints received by the Council from local residents. That is why we take a zero tolerance approach to littering and I hope that this successful prosecution serves as a reminder that dropping a cigarette butt is as bad as dropping any other rubbish.”

Notes to Editor:

1. Littering is an offence under section 87 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Littering is the offence of throwing down, dropping or otherwise depositing any litter and leaving it behind. Littering carries a maximum fine of £2500 upon conviction in the magistrates Court

2. The Clean Neighbourhood and Environment Act 2004 bought into force powers for local authorities to serve Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) for litter offences. FPNs are a means by which offences can be deal without the need for Court proceedings. The FPNs require payment of £80 within 14 days, which is reduced to £60 if paid within 10 days. The money, collected directly by the District Council from FPNs, is used to fund additional education and enforcement activities to further reduce littering and dog fouling across the district.

3. Over the coming months the Environmental Protection team at North Norfolk District Council is committed to providing education to businesses and the people of North Norfolk to raise awareness of the environmental impacts of smoking related litter. Reducing cigarette litter in North Norfolk’s town centres will help improve street cleanliness, public satisfaction and pride in towns. Education and publicity of the problems and potential fines will help people avoid financial penalties and reduce costs and burdens related to dealing with litter related complaints and street cleaning costs.

ENDS