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| Plans for 'tougher' litter fines | Plans for 'tougher' litter fines |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Tougher fines for those found littering and fly-tipping could be introduced by the Scottish government. | Tougher fines for those found littering and fly-tipping could be introduced by the Scottish government. |
| It says the issue currently costs the country about £70m a year to deal with. | It says the issue currently costs the country about £70m a year to deal with. |
| Two separate consultations on land and marine litter have been launched by Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead. | Two separate consultations on land and marine litter have been launched by Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead. |
| They propose better education and increased recycling areas as ways to reduce litter. Plans also include increasing fixed penalty fines from £50 to £80. | They propose better education and increased recycling areas as ways to reduce litter. Plans also include increasing fixed penalty fines from £50 to £80. |
| Penalties for fly-tipping would be increased from £50 to £200 and waste dumped on industrial or business premises could result in a fine of £400. | |
| Research by Zero Waste Scotland, a public body that works to prevent littering and increase recycling, found that £53m is spent clearing up litter across the country each year, with more than £16m spent in wildlife and cleaning costs along coastlines. | Research by Zero Waste Scotland, a public body that works to prevent littering and increase recycling, found that £53m is spent clearing up litter across the country each year, with more than £16m spent in wildlife and cleaning costs along coastlines. |
| Litter has also been found to reduce property values, hit tourism and contribute to health issues, according to the report. | Litter has also been found to reduce property values, hit tourism and contribute to health issues, according to the report. |
| 'Renewed impetus' | 'Renewed impetus' |
| It also estimates that greater recycling of plastics and paper could actually be worth about £1m to the economy. | It also estimates that greater recycling of plastics and paper could actually be worth about £1m to the economy. |
| Mr Lochhead said: "For the first time we're able to put a price on the real cost of littering and with more than 250 million items of litter and over 60,000 fly-tipping incidents a year, we must all do more to tackle this problem. | Mr Lochhead said: "For the first time we're able to put a price on the real cost of littering and with more than 250 million items of litter and over 60,000 fly-tipping incidents a year, we must all do more to tackle this problem. |
| "Binning waste is very easy to do but still half the population admits to littering and that's something we must tackle head-on. | "Binning waste is very easy to do but still half the population admits to littering and that's something we must tackle head-on. |
| "We are making recycling easier and encouraging people and business to take more care and responsibility." | "We are making recycling easier and encouraging people and business to take more care and responsibility." |
| Iain Gulland, director of Zero Waste Scotland, said: "We welcome this consultation bringing a renewed impetus to efforts to tackle litter and fly-tipping. | Iain Gulland, director of Zero Waste Scotland, said: "We welcome this consultation bringing a renewed impetus to efforts to tackle litter and fly-tipping. |
| "We particularly welcome the focus on litter prevention given the cost of clean-up to the public purse." | "We particularly welcome the focus on litter prevention given the cost of clean-up to the public purse." |
| The Towards A Litter-Free Scotland consultation runs until 27 September and the government plans to create a national litter strategy in parliament early next year. | The Towards A Litter-Free Scotland consultation runs until 27 September and the government plans to create a national litter strategy in parliament early next year. |