Legal News
Call for all UK councils to fine motorists who are litterlouts (6 July 2015)
Date: 06/07/2015
Councils in England and Wales are pushing for new laws to fine car owners who drop cigarette ends and other refuse from car windows.
BBC News reports that councils want the same powers available to the authorities in London to prosecute car owners who drop litter from their vehicles.
Environment department Defra is considering how best to implement new powers across the country and identify motorists and their passengers who are litterbugs.
The Local Government Association (LGA) says that clearing up litter from from vehicles is expensive for local councils – and dangerous for council workers sent to collect refuse from the public highway.
A total of 80 tonnes of litter was picked up in an annual clear up on 18 miles of A roads in north Hertfordshire, said the LGA.
Council workers also recovered 20 tonnes of litter along a 16-mile stretch of the A42 in Leicestershire.
Nearly one-quarter of motorists – 23% – admit to having thrown litter out of the car, according to LGA research.
Litter on the roads can be dangerous and cause accidents if objects get caught in the wheels of cycles and motorbikes, or oily or sticky liquids ooze onto road surfaces from discarded bottles and packaging.
Duncan Lewis Criminal Solicitors
Duncan Lewis criminal solicitors can advise at any stage of a charge – including advising on public order offences, dropping litter or dumping rubbish on the public highway.
There are Duncan Lewis offices nationwide and Duncan Lewis is a leading provider of Legal Aid criminal defence services.
For expert legal advice on criminal law, call Duncan Lewis criminal solicitors on 020 7923 4020.