IN a news report on March 28, HT reported on a Hereford man being fined in Manchester for discarding a cigarette butt in the street.

The fine was £220 plus costs of £125 plus a victim surcharge of £88.

It is a pity that this report was not given a more prominent position in the paper. I thought of this when I picked up some litter near the Co-op in Leominster.

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The law states that authorised officers can issue a fixed penalty charge of up to £150 for a litter offence, or if the offender is convicted in court the fine could rise to £2,500. So the penalties are there, they need to be used more often. In the short term, such penalties could help to finance a litter warden.

One problem is that a lot of drink-related litter is discarded at night. Perhaps that could be dealt with via an occasional high-profile raid. The occasional sight of an officer in uniform would help.

What are your thoughts?

You can send a letter to the editor to have your say by clicking here.

Letters should not exceed 250 words and local issues take precedence.

Litter is unsightly and litter attracts litter. It can encourage unwanted attention from animals and birds and can be harmful to them.

Most of us walk past plenty every day. How often do you ever see someone pick any up and bin it?

We have strict enforcement of parking regulations, we need something similar for litter.

JOE COCKER

Leominster