Defra has published updated statutory guidance requiring all local authorities in England to follow a single set of litter enforcement standards by law, replacing previously voluntary codes of practice.

The guidance gives councils the power to issue on-the-spot fixed penalty notices of up to £500 for littering, with fines that go unpaid doubling after 28 days. Vehicle owners can now also be held accountable where the person who dropped litter from a car cannot be identified.

Circular Economy Minister Mary Creagh said the new rules would create a consistent approach to enforcement nationwide. "We are giving local authorities clear legal powers to take action. Councils across the country will now take the same tough approach on litterers," she said.

The enforcement guidance, issued under section 88B of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, covers three areas: fixed penalty notices for littering, penalties for unauthorised distribution of free printed materials and civil penalties for litter thrown from vehicles.

Curbs on private enforcement

A key feature of the guidance is a block on councils using litter fines as a revenue-raising mechanism. The rules state that enforcement activity should in no circumstances be treated as a means of generating income, a provision aimed directly at contracts between councils and private enforcement companies.

The issue has been contentious for several years. Manchester City Council employed private firm 3GS from 2017 to 2022, receiving 25 per cent of each fixed penalty notice issued. Brighton & Hove City Council ended its own contract with the same firm in 2019 after concerns about the company's approach. Enforcement officers working for 3GS reportedly told members of the public they were council employees without disclosing their private sector affiliation.

The new guidance also requires that enforcement be proportionate. Accidental drops of litter should not trigger penalties, and councils are expected to use their discretion when deciding whether to issue a fine.

Wider enforcement measures

The announcement forms part of a broader package of waste enforcement measures from Defra. The Environment Agency's enforcement budget has been increased by 50 per cent to £15.6 million, funding a 33-strong drone squad to locate illegal dump sites and an expansion of the Joint Unit for Waste Crime from 13 to 20 specialists. Those caught illegally transporting or dealing in waste face up to five years' imprisonment.

Keep Britain Tidy chief executive Allison Ogden-Newton welcomed the announcement. "The government has recognised the importance of 'turning off the tap' of litter that blights communities," she said.

The guidance was published ahead of the Great British Spring Clean, Keep Britain Tidy's annual litter-picking campaign running from 13 to 29 March this year.

Keep Britain Tidy's own research, published in January 2025, found that more than 90 per cent of surveyed locations in England contained litter, with the problem nearly three times worse in the most deprived areas.

The updated Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse, first published in 2013, sets out the standards a court would use when assessing whether local authorities have met their obligations under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.