Richard Baum

My voice has deserted me. After coughing and spluttering my way through the last seven days, my vocal chords have finally had enough, packed their bags and shuffled off somewhere. I am left squawking. Which is most amusing to everyone in my life except me. I can no longer pretend to be truly ill though, having been caught red handed on the Metrolink into town on Saturday night by a fellow Councillor. My cover is blown.

It was interesting to read in the news today that the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) has commissioned a report which recommends more fines and rewards as a way to reduce litter. Prestwich, as even casual observers will note, hardly counts as “rural,” but the problem of litter is a hot potato in our area as much as anywhere else. And last week’s news that the Council’s litter patrols had issued a grand total of zero fines to offenders in the last quarter wouldn’t please the CPRE one bit.

The report calls for simple new measures which have been effective elsewhere and could be effective here. Bottle deposits, for instance, which I remember fondly from my childhood but which seem to have disappeared now. I used to get hugely excited at the prospect of getting to drink my Tizer and then get 10p for taking the empty bottle back!

Bill Bryson, the author, is behind the CPRE’s campaign. He is calling for more consistency and joined up thinking in litter policy across the country. And I’d like to echo his views and call for more joined up thinking locally as well. It’s no good the Council increasing litter patrols on the one hand, but removing bins on the other. Yet that’s exactly what they’ve done in Prestwich.

But, as the report points out, so much to do with litter is wider than just litter itself. It’s about civic pride, and once again I think the Council could re-prioritise or think in a more joined up way to make things better. A lot of people talk about “broken window syndrome,” and the fact that if an area looks bad and uncared for, it will encourage people who live there to take less care of it and thus the situation will get worse. In Prestwich, whilst litterbugs need to be stopped from littering with fines and punishments, an equal deterrent might be for us all to take a bit more care over the wider environment. That means all being conscious of our community responsibilities – from people not parking illegally in Prestwich, to dog walkers cleaning up after their pets, to the Council getting off its backside and cleaning up the graffiti which is blighting the town and making it look like a war zone.

Nobody likes litter. But it’s just one part of neglecting Prestwich. I don’t drop litter, but sometimes I drive a bit too fast on the roads round here, or don’t report a blocked drain or a wonky park bench. I should, and we all should, and the Council should act to fix them. If we all did, then people would be much less likely to drop litter because the place is well cared for. And that’s needed too, as well as fines and other measures.

Rick