Littering fines increased to £500 by council

Buckinghamshire Council has introduced a "hard hitting, zero tolerance approach" to littering

A council has raised the fine for littering from £150 to £500 as part of a "zero tolerance" approach to deter offenders.

Buckinghamshire Council said it costs taxpayers £3.5m annually to clear up and dispose of litter.

In July 2023, the government decided to allow authorities to raise the maximum fixed penalty notice from £400 to £1,000 as part of a crackdown on anti-social behaviour.

The £500 fines will double to £1,000 if not paid within 28 days.

The new "For Bucks' Sake" policy was approved by the Conservative-controlled council's cabinet earlier this week.

The councillor for climate change and environment, Thomas Broom, said: "Buckinghamshire is not unique in having problems with litter, but we are one of the first councils choosing to tackle the issue head on with this hard hitting, zero tolerance approach."

He added that it costs taxpayers £25,000 every time the council clears litter from the A404 Marlow by-pass, which includes the cost of traffic management so that workers can do the job safely.

Martin Tett, council leader, explained that in cases of litter being thrown from vehicles, the registered owner would be the individual penalised, as opposed to trying to identify the person who did it.

"This makes it easier to secure a positive result as you don’t need to be the one who dropped the litter to have to pay for the consequences," he said.