LITTER louts could face on-the-spot fines from a town's new "grime-busting" wardens.

Darlington Borough Council's environmental officers are to get tough with those who drop litter on the streets.

They will have the power to issue on-the-spot fines in a bid to strengthen enforcement of anti-litter laws in the town centre.

With immediate effect, anyone found dropping litter will be liable for a £25 penalty.

The council has two full-time environmental wardens routinely patrolling the streets.

Together with three new community wardens, the council's car park wardens and other officers in the public protection division, they will form a group of 32 people who can issue these penalties.

Litter louts will be given a ticket and 14 days in which to pay the fine to the council.

If offenders fail to pay, they will face criminal charges before the magistrates' court.

Litter wardens will also have police back up if people refuse to accept an on-the-spot fine.

To reinforce the dangers and unsightliness of litter, the pollution and regulation team plans to look at new ways of educating children and getting the message across, as well as reviewing enforcement issues targeted at the town centre.

Councillor Steven Harker, cabinet member for community protection, said: "Litter is unsightly and it is costly to clean up.

"We hope these fines will go some way towards punishing those people who are careless enough to spoil our town."

Last month, Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council introduced similar measures to deter litter louts.

A crackdown on litter was launched in Redcar town centre after it emerged that the cost of collecting litter from the High Street and promenade every day was becoming a serious cause for concern for the council.

For two Saturdays, police officers and litter wardens patrolled the streets armed with £25 fixed penalty fines.

The council and the police also issued guidance to the public and warned that prosecutions could follow using evidence obtained from the town's closed-circuit security cameras