Pic: Sam Fox photography, Flickr
Croydon could become a phlegm-free area as the council proposes a ban on spitting in the borough.
The plan was inspired by Enfield Council’s application for a bylaw to make spitting in public illegal.
Mike Fisher, leader of Croydon Council, said: “I have heard of what Enfield has done and I think it is a very good idea, and something that we should introduce here in Croydon.”
Residents raised concerns about the borough’s street spitters at the council’s first question time event of 2012, which took place at Wolsey Junior School in New Addington.
Croydon residents suggested the Enfield spitting ban may be a way to tackle the problem.
A spokesperson for Croydon Council told EastLondonLines: “Spitting in public is a tremendously unpleasant and anti-social behaviour that residents and shoppers really shouldn’t have to endure.
“Although we’d much rather that people understood this without the need to be told, we continue to receive complaints and so we will seriously consider the introduction of tougher rules.”
Street spitters may be charged thousands of pounds, based on maximum fines for dog foulers of £1,000 and £2,500 for litter.
Croydon Council are in the early stages of the process and are currently considering the legal situation along with official guidelines on how the rule might be effectively enforced.
While I agree with this, how on earth can they enforce it? They don’t seem to enforce the existing fines on littering or dog fouling, judging by the dog poo and litter I see in my street. Talk of fines is just hot air unless they have people patrolling to enforce this, and they would never have enough. At best they will fine a couple of people in the main shopping centre while the problem continues in residential streets. So it’s just meaningless spin.