POWERS to issue fly-tippers with "on the spot" penalties were not issued once by some town hall bosses in south Cumbria in 2016.

Figures shows that Barrow Borough Council and South Lakeland District Council did not use the new powers which now allow local authorities to issue fixed penalty notices for small fly-tipping cases. However, Copeland Borough Council did hand out two "on the spot" penalties for fly-tipping under the new legislation.

In May, the government gave local authorities the power to issue fines of between £150 and £400 to those caught in the act of fly-tipping, instead of having to take them to court, as part of efforts to crack down on waste crime.

This situation looks set to change in Barrow borough in 2017 after the outcry over the post-Christmas mountains of rubbish left at Barrow's recycling sites.

Recycling points at The Park Leisure Centre, Tesco Extra in Hindpool Road, Tesco Metro in Flass Lane, Asda in Walney Road and Morrisons in The Strand were left littered with mountains of bags, boxes, and leftover food waste after Christmas Day, when some residents had refused to wait two extra days to dispose of their rubbish correctly.

Around 16 waste collectors, road sweepers and enforcement officers sifted through the rubbish and clearing tonnes of discarded household waste.

The team collected the details of more than 40 people and they are now being contacted about fly-tipping.

Barrow Borough Councillor, Tony Callister, spokesperson for licensing and environmental health and sport at the council said: "From my point of view, as a council we would be foolish not to start using these powers, at the right times. We need to work with residents, we need to find the right balance.

"We don't want to catch people out, we want people to be more responsible."

Asked about the mountains of waste dumped at the full recycling bins, Councillor Callister said he had been "appalled".

He said: "The bin collections had been well publicised, people had to wait an extra two days. A little bit more patience was needed."

The councillor applauded Alan Barker, the council's Streetcare manager, and his department for clearing up the mess and investigate the situation.

Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show, of those town halls responding to the data requests, fines totalling more than £430,000 for fly-tipping have been issued by 118 councils. But 184 councils had not issued any fixed penalty fines.

Many said they have not yet put the new rules in place, but they were in the process of doing so. Others said they pursued illegal dumping of waste through prosecutions or employing methods such as making offenders clear up their rubbish.

In November Barrow Borough Council Streetcare department prosecuted two fly-tipping offenders. They were fined £1,750 and £2,200 at Furness Magistrates' Court.

Local Government Association environment spokesman Martin Tett said: "At a time when councils face difficult choices about services in the light of reducing budgets, they are having to spend a vast amount each year on tackling litter and fly-tipping.

"This is money that would be better spent on vital services such as filling potholes and caring for the elderly."

The Country Land and Business Association called for councils to use the powers to tackle fly-tipping, which cost rural businesses £800 per incident to clear up.

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