Should the council use private company to fine people dropping litter?

[AmberLeaf]

But it does protect the council - who would otherwise be brow beaten by the media or the lefties to rethink the policy or abandon it.

 

I have a similar issue with advertising boards nailed to posts and fences - but it isn't litter until it hits the floor apparently.

 

Depends what they're advertising. If it's a poster to find a missing cat, then It's ok.

[alchresearch]

They do this up in Huddersfield, the results are interesting. Revenues from litter fines are up, but so are complaints of excessive and heavy-handed tactics by the private company involved, like following people around to see if they drop anything, lying about seeing smokers drop butt loudly and publically, the usual crop of "accidentally drop something, but immediately pick it up, and the litter inspectors swoop" and so on. Complaints to the council get told to "complain to the company" who then trot out the usual denials and non-apologies. Which is basically privatised council services all over, really.

 

We've had exactly the same on the Wirral.

 

Some have complained that how were they supposed to know they weren't allowed to throw fag ends on the floor, in the gutter or down the drains.

 

But others have been fined for dropping bread for birds, or not been given adequate time to pick up something tiny.

 

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/now-litter-squad-handing-out-13392844

[philyyy]

Because just like every other outsourced service a private company can run it for a hell of a lot cheaper than it would be to employ directly.

 

Whenever you are talking about taxpayer money its always about the bottom line.

 

Councils have to follow so many silly recruitment rules otherwise it might make sense to keep it in house. How does a private company really manage it more cheaply? Minimum wage?

 

Yes I think it's a good idea.

 

Private companies manage their business much better than the council ever seems to manage their business.

 

I recently challenged a young lady for throwing her cigarette butt out of the window. She said she always did it and didn't seem to realise it was littering. So it sounds like some education / advertising is needed to pre-warn people of the fines.

 

Terrifying.

 

I regularly litterpick a one hundred yard or so stretch of the road through Unstone, and usually collect a carrier bag full each time. Cans, bottles, fag packets are the main items.

 

Good work. I do one with a group once per month and there are The Sheffield Litter Picker pages on Facebook and twitter.

 

Given that the council are facing pretty big budget cuts it seems like a waste of money, the only pulled in 4 grand with is pittance for the cost of employing this company.

 

How many people are employed patrolling the streets? Gotta be a team of them? Handing out the odd fine and doing nowt else?

Would be better to just employ a few more litter pickers, doesn't educate the public but at least they'd clean up the mess!

 

A cleaner city is worth more than the money. Picking it up is a constant cycle, education needs to be paid for before that. Although I have no idea why some people would need educating to take their rubbish home rather than polluting the place.

[PRESLEY]

Because just like every other outsourced service a private company can run it for a hell of a lot cheaper than it would be to employ directly.

 

Whenever you are talking about taxpayer money its always about the bottom line.

 

Yeh and thats why we have endless Agencies treating workers like, you know what and Zero hour contracts ect.

[iansheff]

I don't think the council use a company to fine people, if they are going to crack down on litter then they should employ people to do the job. They would make more money out of the fines if they did the job by employing people rather than getting a cut from a company hired to do it.

[SamWilkins]

Making people do community work just because they have dropped something on the street.... Long stretch, in my opinion, the fine is solid enough to make them think again. All that is needed now is for people to know, that there are people out there looking for those things and fines are ACTUALLY being handed. Making people contribute to community work and you might end up with more problems to deal with than before.

[Cyclone]

Making people do community work just because they have dropped something on the street.... Long stretch, in my opinion, the fine is solid enough to make them think again. All that is needed now is for people to know, that there are people out there looking for those things and fines are ACTUALLY being handed. Making people contribute to community work and you might end up with more problems to deal with than before.

 

3 strikes and they get banned from Yorkshire though, have to move house and go somewhere that will put up with their dirty habits.

 

If you stand in the city centre for a few minutes and watch, you'll see loads of smokers just throwing cigarette butts on the floor, not all of them, but enough to give the whole group that image.

And teens, I probably littered as a teen, they're just lazy and stupid and young, I caught one stuffing an empty bottle into a neighbours hedge, made him come back and collect it.

[prince al]

Yes fantastic idea. London road and Page hall should be easy pickings.

[SamWilkins]

Maybe it should be best if they can choose.... 70 quid fine or a day of labor... How is that

[carosio]

We should have a compulsory deposit scheme on bottles and cans, 20p per item, that would massively reduce the littering of them.

Yes, but needs to be a watertight system or else the deposited cans/bottles would be magically appearing back in the gutters!