CHEWING GUM 2

Shoppers could have to pay a tax on packets of chewing gum to pay for extra street cleaning. The proposal is aimed at tackling the huge cleaning costs incurred by London councils. Retailers would have to pay local authorities a set amount for every pack of gum they sold, a cost that could be passed on to the public. The money would be used specifically to remove chewing gum from the streets. A single piece of gum costs 3p to manufacture but 10p to remove and the overall cleaning bill for boroughs across London is estimated at £2.3 million a year.

Lib Dem MP Bob Russell tabled a Commons motion this year calling for every packet to be taxed by up to 25p and Brent council began fining people £80 if they were caught spitting out chewing gum in the street and refused to clean it up. The latest proposal is being considered by London Councils, which represents the capital's local authorities. A London Councils spokesman said boroughs wanted clean streets but did not want council taxpayers to foot the rising bill for the cost of removing gum.

Wrigley's, the largest chewing gum manufacturer in Britain, said, "The Wrigley Company shares the desire of London councils to reduce gum litter, but research demonstrates that a tax would lead to an increase in the problem, as people would be more likely to drop gum as they had already paid for it to be cleaned up." London Councils is also considering whether local authorities should charge people for using public toilets to pay for their upkeep. (Source: Daily Mail, Oct/07)

There are only two things certain in life - Ken Livingstone's refusal to apologise and David Beckham's loyalty to his wife. Oh, and taxes. And it is taxes we turn to now as we read in the Telegraph that council representatives from London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast have joined forces to call for a chewing-gum tax. At what the paper calls the first national "gum summit", the councils called for the introduction of a penny-a-packet tax on chewing gum.

They also want the boffins at firms like Wrigleys, which makes 90% of the estimated 935 million packets of gum chewed by Britons each year, to develop biodegradable gum and encourage responsible disposal of the masticated products. But for now, the councils want for there to be a levy placed on gum to help pay for the £150m a year it costs to strip the streets of the stuff.

And discarded gum is a problem, as the paper tells its readers that the London borough of Westminster has an average of 20 pieces of discarded gum for every square meter of pavement. Of course, it would be preferable is people did not chew gum in public in the first place. So, if possible, gum-chewers should deists from their anti-social habit and engage their mouths in doing something that can be cleaned up far easier. Like smoking... (Source: Anorak)

A levy of 1p per packet is proposed in the latest attempt to tackle gum litter, which adds an estimated £150m per year to the cleaning bills of local authorities in England. Liverpool council's leader Mike Storey believes that if the proposed nationwide tax is backed by other councils there is a serious chance of Parliament making it law. Taxation has been mooted by councils in the past as a means of covering clear-up costs but Liverpool has intensified pressure on manufacturers as the first to put it to the vote.

"Chewing-gum litter causes major problems and makes the city less attractive than it ought to be," said Mr Storey. "We are serious about tackling this issue and we want to join other cities in raising a 1p tax to help clean up and dispose of it. If the large cities came together we could achieve this by the time that Liverpool becomes the European Capital of Culture in 2008 when it will represent the whole country." Taxation had emerged as their preferred option after scientists have failed to eradicate the problem through experimenting with everything from laser guns to pavement coatings.

Liverpool City Council says revenues from the tax would contribute to the cost of the clean-up operation but would also be paid into an education fund to reduce littering in the future. Gum manufacturers, represented by the Biscuit, Cake, Chocolate and Confectionery Association (BCCCA) oppose the tax, saying it would not break the habit of littering. Under the Clean Neighbourhood Bill which classifies gum as litter, local authorities have increased powers to fine those who litter when they discard their gum in a scheme which was pioneered by Leicester City Council. The BCCCA says fines are a more effective deterrent for people who litter and can be used both for clean-up operations and for awareness campaigns.

You can be fined £50 on-the-spot for dropping a piece of chewing gum and face a £2,500 fine in court in the following places:

Leeds, Bradford, Halifax, Barnsley, Huddersfield, Chesterfield, Sheffield, Hull, Nottingham, Croydon, Rochdale, Taunton, Cardiff, Lewisham, Salford, Sedgefield, Horsham, Mansfield, Cheltenham, Wigan, Redcar, Belfast, Oldham, Darlington, Salford, Slough, Chorley, Dudley, Leicester, Ipswich, Hounslow, Chelmsford, Birmingham, Torbay, Glasgow, Cambridge, York, Scunthorpe, Manchester, Crewe, St Albans, Wrexham, Wolverhampton, Reigate, Southampton, Bath, Hammersmith, Fulham, Preston, Lancaster, Warwick, Shrewsbury, Sunderland, Anglesey, Luton, Redditch, Bristol, Rochford, Exeter, Walsall, Caerphilly, Chester, Derby, Newcastle, Falkirk, Westminster, Southwark, Solihull, Newmarket, Bolton, Liverpool, Penarth, Rugby, Edinburgh, Basingstoke, Hastings, Selby, Stirling, Colchester, Harrogate, Bournemouth, Boston, Northumberland, Stoke, Barking, Aylesbury and more...

<<< Prev