EAST Hampshire residents are being warned littering fines could be increased five-fold after a successful court action under a new system.

The warning comes after 15 people who had refused to pay Fixed Penalty Notices fines of £80 issued by East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) were ordered to pay £405 by a magistrate.

Each was ordered to pay an in increased fine of £220, a victim surcharge of £30 and costs of £155, and as well as the added cost, each individual now has a criminal record.

They were prosecuted by EHDC under a new legal procedure called the Single Justice Procedure (SJP), which allows low-level crime to be dealt with by a single magistrate and without a court hearing, so freeing up valuable court time.

EHDC Leader Richard Millard, said: “The council takes a zero tolerance approach to littering and our litter enforcement officers patrol town centres and hot spots to help stop this issue at source.

“Litter is an important issue for our residents who expect us to take action against those too lazy to pick up after themselves.

“It is a blight on our landscape and a pollutant for our environment and costs the taxpayer tens of thousands of pounds a year to clear up.

“Our message is clear, if you drop litter you can expect to be fined. These individuals ignored that fine and now have been ordered to pay a much heavier penalty.”