Litter wardens under fire over fall in fines

EDINBURGH'S environmental wardens have come under fire after a big fall in the number of fines dished out for offences such as littering and dog fouling.

Latest figures show the Capital's 32 wardens issue on average just one fine a week each - around half the number handed out by their counterparts in Glasgow.

Littering fines now account for fewer than half of all fixed penalty notices, despite the introduction of the smoking ban which was expected to see offences rocket.

Council chiefs today defended the record of the city's wardens, saying their role went far beyond simply dishing out the £50 fixed penalty notices.

But Mark McInnes, the city's Tory environment spokesman, said the drop in fines was concerning. He said: "I am very surprised at these figures.

"It would be nice to think it is because fewer people are littering but the experience of most people across the city, and certainly the people who write to me, is that, if anything, there is more litter.

"It does seem to be a low amount of fines and I would have thought there would have been an increase in the litter fines specifically given the impact of the smoking ban. I hope the council will give more support to the wardens, and I would like to see more of them on the streets."

The council first introduced environmental wardens in 2001, giving them the power to issue £50 fines. The new figures show the total number of fines issued in Edinburgh fell from 2042 in 2005/06 to 1657 in 2006/07.

Litter fines have dropped from 687 in to 527 - or just over one per warden per month.

Fines relating to the disposal of domestic and trade waste, which account for the majority of offences, were cut from 1061 to 954. When it comes to dog fouling, the number of tickets handed out has also fallen from 289 to 164.

Edinburgh's Labour environment spokeswoman, Maureen Child, whose party was behind the introduction of the city's wardens, said: "You have to look beyond the raw figures when you consider the role that wardens play in Edinburgh.

"They are not solely handing out fines. I think their presence has been welcomed on the streets and they are leading to a drop of the number of people offending.

"You have to remember that it was not so long ago that local authority's were not able to prosecute for dropping litter, so progress is being made."

In March, Edinburgh's streets were given their highest-ever cleanliness rating by environmental watchdog Keep Scotland Beautiful. Edinburgh's overall score was 70 - the highest in the eight years that the inspections have been carried out.

Councillor Paul Edie, the city's housing leader, said, "Our environmental wardens deal with a wide range of issues including abandoned vehicles, vehicle emission enforcement, litter dropping and fly-tipping.

"Their work is both proactive - patrolling and inspecting areas - and reactive - dealing with complaints and inquiries. Their priority is not one of heavy-handed fine issuing but primarily to educate the public in the long run and to make sure the cities streets are kept as litter-free as possible.

"While it was suggested the smoking ban would dramatically increase smoking-related litter, we have worked tirelessly with both businesses in the city, and the public, in order to ensure that this didn't become an issue."

It emerged last month that more than 200 of the £50 fines have been handed out to people caught putting rubbish out for collection on the wrong day or leaving it next to an overflowing wheelie bin.