'I'm a retired bin man and I was fined £80 not having a dog poo bag with me in Wolverhampton'

A retired bin man from Wolverhampton pensioner is aiming to use his own experience of falling foul of a new law around not having poo bags on him for his dog to help others avoid the same fate.

Trevor Smith said he had been out walking his two-year-old golden Labrador Ted on February 6 at Wolverhampton Railway Station when he was approached by two Wolverhampton Council officials.

The 80-year-old former binman said he had only taken a few steps out of the car and was walking with Ted to get his paper, and was more than a little bit shocked to receive an £80 fine for not having any bags on him to pick up any dog mess.

He said: "All I'd done is get out of the car to get a paper and I had the dog with me as he's only two and I was getting him used to riding in the car, so I'd given him a ride up with me.

"I got parked up and got him away from everyone and we were just walking along when the two men were just standing there, not wearing a uniform or anything, but they started talking to me.

"They asked me if I had any bags on me, which I didn't as we'd been to the park and I'd had to use it there, so I didn't have any on me and even though I told them that I had some in the car, they said I couldn't go back and I needed to have it on me there and then.

"They weren't nasty about it or anything, but did tell me that if I went to court, it could be a £1,000 fine, and they said they were only doing their job, but I think they could have given me a warning at least."

Mr Smith said he had spoken to a lot of people about the new law, which was aimed at trying to reduce the amount of dog litter in public spaces and was brought in place around the UK in 2023.

On the spot fines were one way to try and combat the most common offence of dog owners, which is not picking up after their dog.

Local councils have varying methods for tackling the problem including Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs), which are intended to deal with nuisance or antisocial behaviour by issuing the fines.

However, these aren’t in place everywhere, with specific measures for owners in Hammersmith and Fulham in London, Lincolnshire, Doncaster and North Somerset. Wolverhampton is also included in this.

Mr Smith said that he wasn't alone in not knowing about the law and said that he wanted to ensure that no one else got caught unaware again.

He said: "All I've been doing now is to try and stop other dog walkers from getting caught like I did as I've spoken to the people I walk my dog with and they didn't know about it.

"That was the same with a lot of the other people I've met and spoken to and I think it's wrong that people are being fined when they don't know.

"Ignorance of the law is one thing, but if they don't advertise it, then you don't know, although I now make sure I have bags in every pocket now."

A spokesman for Wolverhampton Council said: "As in this case, any person in charge of a dog on public land is breaching a Public Spaces Protection Order if they are unable to produce suitable means of removing dog faeces when asked to do so by an authorised officer.

"These additional measures were added to the PSPO in 2023 following a public consultation in which 91 per cent of people strongly agreed.

"Every day, dogs leave excrement on footways and public open spaces. Not only is it unsightly and a nuisance when you step in it, but contact can also lead to blindness due to an infection called toxocara canis.

"Anyone wishing to appeal their fixed penalty notice can do so."