£50 fines for gum and dog dirt

People who spit out chewing gum or allow their dogs to foul pavements are to be handed £50 on-the-spot fines.

Police wardens will begin issuing the penalty tickets in Kensington and Chelsea in a major clampdown on antisocial behaviour.

Those who drop litter or cycle on the pavements will also be targeted.

From Monday, any one seen committing an offence in the borough will be asked to clear up after themselves. If they refuse they will be issued with a ?50 penalty.

If they do not pay within 14 days, the council has vowed to pursue them in the civil courts where the financial penalty will escalate.

The Conservative-run borough is the first in the capital to order its team of police community support officers - which will shortly double in strength to 100 - to enforce new laws against such "low-level" offences.

It says dog-fouling and litterdropping consistently top the list of issues that offend residents and contribute to a poorer quality of life.

Nick Paget-Brown, the council's cabinet member for community safety, said: "One of the things we hope to be able to do is stop the persistent plague of people dropping chewing gum on the pavements.

"Our understanding under the law is that it is littering. We will be asking people to pick up any gum they have dropped. If they refuse we will issue a ?50 fine." The PCSOs are being trained in how to issue the fines, which have already been handed out to cyclists caught riding on pavements.

The powers have existed since 2002 but the Met was unable to enforce them as they did not have a readymade ticket to issue.

Since last April, PCSOs in the borough have issued 175 warnings for littering. In addition, council enforcement officers issued 700 fines.

Mr Paget-Brown said the council had "considerable success" in getting offenders to pay up. What we're trying to do is deter people from committing these anti-social acts.

"There are one or two anti-social residents who are well-known to everybody, despite being asked over many years not to allow their dogs to foul the pavement. They will now be targeted."

The borough - one of the most affluent-in London - has been at the forefront of tackling anti-social behaviour by "purchasing" extra PCSOs from the Met. This deal, under which 50 will have their wages paid by the borough, allows the council to work hand-inhand with the police commander in setting the priorities.

Other London boroughs have already shown interest in following the lead.

Mr Paget-Brown said: "The council has been investing quite heavily in PCSOs. Their focus is to look at antisocial behaviour and try to tackle some of the things that make life less tolerable than it might otherwise be for lawabiding residents.

"We have been able to tackle many problems that have probably gone unaddressed previously. It enables the regular police officers to focus on mainstream crime."