by Graham Tutthill

gtutthill@thekmgroup.co.uk

Officers who are about to take to the streets of Dover, Deal and Sandwich to combat litter and dog fouling will have a zero-tolerance approach to their job.

That's the warning from the company XFOR which has been given the contract for issuing fixed penalty notices to people who drop litter or fail to clear up after their pets.

Council cabinet member Cllr Nick Kenton said only those who deliberately dropped litter or acted with intent would be fined, not those who accidentally dropped litter while getting something out of their pockets.

Michael Fisher, group operations director for XFOR, said they would take a zero-tolerance approach to littering “on any scale”.

He said: “Local residents have become increasingly frustrated by the amount of mess across the town and, just as we see a large amount of litter at gateways to towns and cities, the issue seems to be even more prevalent at this gateway to the UK.

“At the request of the local authority, we will take a zero-tolerance approach to litter, issuing tickets for a wide range of offences.”

The six-month trial scheme will see a senior enforcement officer and four environmental officers patrolling the town in uniform “acting as a visible deterrent for would-be offenders” and issuing fines to those who drop litter or fail to clean up dog mess.

Representatives from the enforcement team were out and about in Dover today explaining to people what will be happening when the new scheme comes into operation on February 1.

Full story in this week's Dover Mercury and East Kent Mercury.