PEOPLE who drop litter are facing hefty fines as enforcement officers step up patrols over Christmas.

The environmental enforcement team from Middlesbrough Council will be out in the town's streets over the festive season and will issue anybody who is seen dropping litter with an £80 fixed-penalty ticket.

Councillor Barry Coppinger, executive member for community safety and leisure, said: "We don't want to seem like Scrooges, and we certainly don't want to spoil people's enjoyment of the festive season, but we all have a duty to keep our town clean and tidy, whatever the time of year.

"We won't tolerate people who carelessly or deliberately drop litter. Only last month, in one weekend, 12 town centre litter offenders were given £80 fixed-penalty notices.

"We have lots of visitors from out-of-town at Christmas, who come to take advantage of our excellent range of shops. We want them to see a town that is well cared for."

One Nottingham man who fell foul of enforcement officers in Acklam last month, had thrown a half-eaten bread bun from his van window.

This was witnessed by two officers, who were on a monitoring exercise in the area, and he was issued with an £80 fixed-penalty notice.