A FORMER mayor of Worcester wants to punish then name and shame litterbugs as part of a tough approach to clampdown on the scourge.

Councillor Gareth Jones told Worcester City Council on Tuesday that he was "sick and tired" of seeing people dropping rubbish in the streets and getting away with it.

"If you walk down the High Street you see people of all ages dropping litter and not once have I heard of a prosecution," he said.

"It's one of my bugbears and it's costing us a fortune to pick up other people's litter. I'd like to see an example made and then publicised. It's about time we stopped looking at our maintenance people and introduced a regime of teaching people not to drop litter."

He added that the council could save thousands of pounds if littering was reduced by just a small percentage.

"It's becoming a disgrace," said Coun Jones, who was mayor two years ago. "Instead of criticising ourselves it's about time we criticised the people who dropped the litter."

Coun Jones' wish may soon come true as plans are in the pipeline to give some community support officers the power to issue fixed penalty notices to litter louts.

Mike Harrison, head of operational services at the city council, said a number of community support officers are already trained to do this but a final agreement with the police as to their powers and responsibilities needs first to be formalised.

He said: "It's all in place. It's a matter of crossing the Ts and dotting the Is."

The city council possess significant powers under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act, which was given the Royal Assent earlier this year, to punish those who litter, such as the greater use of fixed penalties as an alternative to prosecution.

The Worcester News contacted Worcester Police to find out how many prosecutions there have been this year, but no answer was given as we went to press.

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worcester: I'm sick and tired of seeing litterbugs get away with it, says ex-mayor

It's time to punish the people who drop litter