§ Mr. CoakerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment he has made of the power of(a) local authorities and (b) the police to prosecute people who drop litter in the street; and how many people have been prosecuted for dropping litter in the street under these powers in each of the last three years. [85672]
§ Mr. MeacherThe Advisory Group on Litter undertook a wide-ranging review of the litter legislation, including the powers of local authorities and the police, in 1993. A summary of the Advisory Group's report is available in the House Library.
The number of defendants prosecuted for litter offences under section 87 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 in England and Wales is given in the following table1
1996 1997 21998 Police Prosecution 455 377 377 Other Prosecution3 171 128 109 1 Data for the Home Office Court Proceedings Database 2 Provisional 3 Includes prosecutions instigated by Government Departments, local authorities (the majority of which fall into this category), private organisations and individuals