Ron gets on his Soapbox to bewail the lack of local Authority attempts to enforce litter regulations
Litter.
Everybody I speak to hates to see litter lying about and they are horrified at the extent to which our town pavements are covered with spots of chewing gum, most young people that I speak to feel equally strongly on this issue. So who is responsible? It does seem to be more of a problem in Britain than elsewhere in Europe. Many other countries outside of Europe also manage to succeed in keeping their environment cleaner. I am told that in some far eastern countries the penalties for dropping litter, including cigarette ends and chewing gum are much more severe, in Singapore, so I am told, it is even an offence to chew chewing gum in public places although, if it is true, that does seem to be an extreme measure. Nevertheless the strict enforcement of laws associated with heavy penalties does seem to work. In Britain we do have a law against dropping litter but it seems that it is rarely enforced. The failure to enforce laws generally does appear to be an increasing problem in the UK, whether this is because of a failure on the part of the police or whether it is because the penalties imposed are so trivial as to make prosecution not worthwhile I do not know, but something needs to be done. It seems that we, and perhaps the USA, are encumbered with a moronic minority who care little for the environment in which they live and whose behaviour ranges from careless scattering of litter to vandalising and destroying public and private property alike. Why it should be worse for us than in most other Western European countries is a mystery to me.