Regular readers of this blog will be aware of our local campaign for more action by the Council, University and Police to tackle the problem of the build up of rubbish in and around the University area.
There has been a potentially positive development today with news that the local Neighbourhood Police team is set to start issuing fixed penalty notices of £75 against those who despoil the local environment.
My Lib Dem colleagues and I have been campaigning for several years for a better response from local public bodies and we have regularly highlighted the problems of overflowing bins, skips and bulky waste dumped in gardens around the University area.
It's good to see the local media continue to report this issue which is of major concern to our residents.
Many local residents we have spoken to have backed our call for action and have helped get the message across to those who need to hear it.
The Conservative MP for Reading East and local Labour activists have both belatedly backed our call for action. It's good to have them on board.
Our lobbying has resulted in a number of significant wins for local residents which will help make the area cleaner and greener.
We recognise, however, that there is a lot more to be done before local people will be satisfied by the efforts of the local Council and the University to get on top of this problem.
We have specifically requested on several occasions over the years that the Council and the Police use the legal powers available to them to make sure that our local streets and public areas are not used as a dumping ground.
For this reason, today's news about fixed penalty notices is most welcome. These notices will need to be used sparingly and carefully by the Police but they will help get the message across to landlords and others that failing to deal with waste at rented (or privately owned) properties is unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
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