Tough stance against fly posters

A council says it is winning the war against fly posters after taking a hard-line stance against offenders.

Traffic lights, public art and lamp posts have been targeted by fly posters in the Gateshead area for years.

Now Gateshead Borough Council says it has identified the main culprits and has launched legal action.

Legal experts for the council are preparing more than 50 separate cases of illegal fly posting to take before magistrates next month.

The authority says it has identified three main offenders - all linked to the area's club scene.

Environmental health officers began taking down illegal posters during the early summer.

But instead of throwing them away, they kept them as evidence of an offence - each is considered a separate offence.

Dangerous activity

Paul Dowling, head of regulatory services for Gateshead Council, said: "The drop in illegal fly posting around the town is noticeable - it has not disappeared entirely, but it has substantially reduced.

"Fly posters are a real menace because their advertisements clutter up busy road junctions and distract motorists who really need to be concentrating on the road ahead.

"Their activities are a danger to anyone who uses the road, as well as being messy and unsightly.

"I am pleased that our new tough line seems to have reduced the problem, but this is not a flash-in-the-pan."

Councillors have recently given enforcement officers greater powers to take action against future offenders.

The council says it will submit legal papers to Gateshead Magistrates in September and hopes for court dates in the early autumn.