Owners of fouling dogs rapped for just £100

DERRY City Council raised just £100 over the past five years until April 2011 through fixed penalties for dog fouling - one of the lowest levels in Northern Ireland.

By The Newsroom

Published 23rd Dec 2011, 09:18 BST

Only Strabane (£50) and Ballymoney (£50) raised a lower amount. The £100 sum in Londonderry was equal to that raised in Limavady and Dungannon/South Tyrone.

According to figures released by the Environment Minister Alex Attwood £50 was raised here in both 2010/11 and 2008/9.

Mr Attwood explained that under Article 4 of the Litter (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 it is an offence to permit a dog to foul.

However, the Council has since April issued three fines for fouling, with a further two fixed penalties pending.

A spokesperson for Derry City Council said that “in order to issue fixed penalty notices or prosecutions, dog wardens or enforcement officers must witness a person permitting their dog to foul and failing to clean up after it, making it difficult for Council to impose fixed penalty notices.”