Litter enforcement officers spotted ignoring rubbish in Ashford town centre
10:10, 23 March 2017
A resident snapped this photo of the litter squad ignoring rubbish in a town centre.
The two enforcement officers were spotted walking past a plastic bag dropped in Ashford high street.
The eyewitness said the pair had walked down from New Rents into the High Street and the bag was blowing across the ground directly in front of them.
He said: "A bin was around six feet away but they ignored the bag and walked straight past it.
"I think it sends a very poor message about littering, seemingly only the cash matters.
"The idea appears to be a failure as litter is still visible around town."
Ashford Borough Council (ABC) teamed up with Kingdom Local Authority Support Services (simply known as Kingdom) last year to crack down on litter louts.
Officers can issue £75 on-the-spot fines to people caught deliberately dropping litter or not clearing up after their pets, with no reduction for early payment.
When the scheme was launched, ABC said it was "not about making money" but was a way to make "Ashford a cleaner and tidier place."
ABC has been approached for a comment.
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