A new enforcement team to tackle the scourge of fly-tipping has been launched by the council.

Hounslow Council's newly recruited Special Waste Enforcement Service will patrol the borough and investigate reported fly-tips.

The team will work with residents and businesses to gather key information, alongside an extensive network of CCTV cameras at their disposal to find offenders and make sure they are fined or prosecuted for their environmental crimes.

The enforcement campaign will also utilise posters in hotspots featuring piercing eyes with the message; "Beware fly-tippers! Hounslow's newly recruited enforcement officers are watching you."

Estimates say fly-tipping costs the council tax payers more £1 million a year.

Councillor Guy Lambert, Hounslow Council's Cabinet Member for Highways, Recycling and Trading Companies, said: "We all love clean streets and want to live in a borough where people take pride and work together to achieve a cleaner, greener borough.

"The last year has seen us all spend much of our time at home and while there was almost no litter on our high streets and town centres, fly-tipping incidents remained alarmingly high.

"We want to ensure that our borough looks its best when lockdown restrictions ease and we can go out and enjoy ourselves again.

"Fly-tipping on our streets and green spaces, blights neighbourhoods, endangers wildlife and impacts on people's pride of place, while putting added strain on Council services.

"We know that fly-tipping is the action of a small number of people, but it affects everyone. Residents and businesses in Hounslow have had enough.

"We are sending a clear message to anyone who fly-tips. We will not tolerate fly-tipping, we are watching you and you will be punished.

"It's fantastic to have our newly recruited Special Waste Enforcement Service team in operation and patrolling the borough.

"They will be integral to keeping our streets clean, but we all need to work together to eradicate this issue and we hope residents and businesses can support their work."

Last year, despite lockdown restrictions and calls to stay at home, the Council investigated over 25,000 cases of reported fly-tipping with the majority removed within 24 hours.

This resulted in a total of 178 fixed penalty notices.

Fly-tipping can be reported the council's website or the Fix My Street app.

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