Swindon resident receives Wiltshire Council’s first £1,000 fine for tipping

The council increased the penalties in April to be a greater deterrent

The first £1,000 fine for fly-tipping has been handed out by Wiltshire Council – less than two months after penalties for illegal littering increased.

A Swindon resident has been fined after rubbish left in Royal Wootton Bassett was found at an address in the town.

The local authority more than doubled fixed penalty notices from the previous £400 on April 23 in a bid to act as a greater deterrent to fly-tippers.

They also handed out two £400 fines, for offenses which occurred before the change came into effect.

One of these was given to a former Salisbury resident for leaving rubbish right outside the Churchfields household recycling center in front of an enforcement officer.

The other incident took place in Devizes, where a bed base had been left.

Council leader Richard Clewer said: “There is no excuse for littering our beautiful county and we will continue to prosecute those responsible for this serious crime.

“These new increased penalty charges are a perfect example of our commitment to tackling fly-tipping here in Wiltshire and sends a clear message to anyone considering doing so.

“We have a zero-tolerance approach to tipping, as set out in our business plan and our award-winning We’re Targeting Fly-tippers campaign, which is why we continue to invest significantly in officers and technology to tackle this issue . environmental crime.

“If anyone notices fly tipping in the county I would urge them to report it to us using MyWilts and we will investigate and take action.”

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