New restrictions around littering, smoking in children’s play areas and dog control have now come into place in Leeds.
Anyone walking a dog will be required to carry a bag or have some other way to pick up and remove their dog’s mess, as well as there being additional locations within the city where dogs will be required to be placed on a lead. Dogs will also be prohibited from Leeds City council owned tennis courts and multi-use games areas.
This builds on the previous dog control orders that included the dog wardens powers to ask owners to put a dog on a lead (where it is causing a nuisance) and the maximum number of dogs that can be walked at any one time (six for professional walkers and four for others).
Fixed penalty notices of £100 have also been introduced to enforce an earlier prohibition on smoking in children’s playgrounds.
Along with the above changes, new regulations from the Government that came into effect earlier this year give local authorities the power to increase the charge for fixed penalty notices for littering to up to £150. Leeds City Council raised the charge of a fixed penalty notice to £100 (an increase of £25 from the current fine), or £80 (an increase of £20) if you pay within 10 days. This is the first increase to the fine in 13 years.
The recommendation was made following extensive public consultation around tackling litter and to act as a better deterrent to people dropping litter. The fine also affects the unauthorised distribution of free printed material, flyposting and graffiti.
Councillor Mohammed Rafique, Leeds City’s Council’s executive member for the environment, said:
“Keeping the city tidy and free of mess is a priority for the council and we are therefore taking stronger actions against those that do litter or fail to clean up after their dogs and lead to the complaints regarding the city’s cleanliness.
“We don’t want to have to fine people, so it is a simple case of doing the right thing, putting litter in the bin and picking up their dog’s mess.
“With regards to the controls around dogs, the primary aim is to encourage good habits, therefore we will allow a three month introductory period where we will be educating dog owners as to their responsibilities, rather than penalising people for innocent mistakes. With the co-operation of residents, visitors and businesses, we hope to see a great improvement throughout Leeds resulting in high standards of cleanliness.”
To find out more about the restrictions and new fines in place which came into effect on 1st July 2018 visit;
