Stoke North MP Jonathon Gullis has today welcomed Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s commitment to ‘take whatever measures’ it can to reinforce the message that fly-tipping is not tolerated. This comes hot on the heels of the City Council’s recent crushing a van linked to fly-tipping within the Tunstall area, which was warmly welcomed by Jonathan and local residents.
Jonathan recently wrote to Cllr Carl Edwards, cabinet members for Environment, suggesting that the City Council investigate the potential to offer a bounty for information received that led to successful prosecution.
Similar schemes are already in operation in neighbouring councils, such as Stafford Borough Council who offer a £100 bounty for those who supply information on dog owners who fail to clean up after their pets.
“Stoke-on-Trent City Council have really stepped up their approach to tackling the scumbags who believe it is acceptable to fly-tip in our communities, and I know that residents really welcome this approach. However, speaking to residents in areas such as Goldenhill and Smallthorne, some residents know who the culprits are but are not willing to come forward.”
“These communities are those suffering the most from these disgusting actions, so I would very much welcome the introduction of a bounty scheme to secure the vital information the council needs to crack down and punish those scumbags who dump waste on our streets, and believe others should clear up after them.”
Conservative Councillor and Cabinet Member for the Environment, Carl Edwards, has given his backing to examine how a bounty scheme, or similar, could work in Stoke-on-Trent.
“Jonathan and I have worked closely together, examining what further measures the council could introduce to help tackle this appalling behaviour. We have already issued over 183 Fixed Penalty Notices in the past few months. We are purchasing mobile CCTV cameras to deploy at hot-spots.”
“However, human intelligence is vital. We know residents do witness the offences taking place, and always encourage them to give information to the council. If offering a form of reward is another way of securing crucial intelligence than I am all for it,” commented Councillor Edwards.
The City Council will now explore ways of introducing a scheme similar to Stafford Borough Council and Cannock Chase in the coming months.