MK Labour has pledged that if they win the upcoming local elections, they will introduce litter wardens across the city to tackle the ongoing issue.
This comes as councillors and local organisations have reported seeing a rise in littering since the first lockdown in 2020.
At the start of June 2020, The Parks Trust collected over 800 bags of litter from Milton Keynes' parks in just one week alone.
This even led to children creating 'do not litter' signs and pinning them up in popular walking areas, including Bury Fields in Newport Pagnell.
Now, the Labour group says that if they retain control of Milton Keynes Council they will hire wardens that have the powers to issue warnings and on the spot fines for littering.
More immediate fines is something the current Leader of Milton Keynes Council, Cllr Pete Marland, said the local authority would "consider" if the public supported the idea.
MKFM asked residents their opinions on the possibility of more fines for littering and most people were supportive.
Over 40 local authorities in England have currently taken up powers that allow those littering to be fined, and MK Labour believes the time has come to introduce wardens in Milton Keynes and take a "harsher" approach.
Cllr Emily Darlington, Cabinet Member for Public Realm said: “Litter is a major issue. There is no excuse for it. It costs the council hundreds of thousands of pounds to remove and makes our streets look bad. The time has come to find and fine the culprits.”
The group is also pledging to investigate the use of new technology to identify and punish people who litter from vehicles. A number of authorities, such as Maidstone Borough Council in Kent, have also been piloting new technology that is able to identify littering from vehicles and issue fines.
Labour says that any surplus funding raised from fines will be re-invested into keeping the streets clean and other services such as tackling fly-tipping.
Cllr Lauren Townsend, Cabinet Member for Regulatory Services, said: “We want to keep our streets clean, so if we retain the leadership of MK Council after the local elections in May, we will introduce litter wardens in Milton Keynes with the powers to issue warnings and on the spot fines.
"We will also look at using new technology to catch people who litter from vehicles. Our priority is a clean Milton Keynes, so we are very happy to be clear that any surplus that the scheme may generate for the council will be re-invested back into keeping our communities clean and tidy.”
Cllr Darlington concluded: “The MK Labour message to litter louts is we will find you and we will fine you.”
