Merton Council is continuing its clamp-down on litter bugs as it joins forces with specialist environmental crime enforcers from Kingdom Environmental Protection Services in a new six-month trial.

The council’s own enforcement officers will work alongside the Kingdom enforcement team to deter people from dropping litter on Merton’s streets and will focus on Wimbledon, Mitcham and Morden town centres. Anyone caught dropping litter is liable to pay a fixed penalty notice of £75. However, to ensure the public knows that there is increased litter enforcement in the borough, there will be a grace period and officers who catch people dropping litter in these town centres will issue them with a warning letter and explain to them that next time they will have to pay the fine. The grace period will continue until 2 June.

Tougher enforcement on people who drop litter is the latest initiative in the council’s anti-litter campaign following the publication of its anti-litter code, installation of special gum and cigarette butt bins and high tech smart bins, as well as teaming up with Love Clean Streets to allow residents to report litter and fly tipping through the free Love Clean Streets smartphone app.

Merton Council’s director for environment and regeneration Chris Lee said: “We are continuing our clamp-down on people who drop litter on our streets. We annually spend £5million clearing litter, graffiti, fly tipping and other environmental crimes from our streets, some of which could be spent on other services. Bringing in extra enforcement on this trial basis will allow us to assess the difference it will make to our streets, which the vast majority of people want to see kept clean. A warm-up period to allow us to talk to people littering, explain the consequences of littering and give them a warning should encourage people to take responsibility for their own rubbish in the future.”