THE MINORITY of people disobeying the rules are the reason why ‘extreme measures’ are being brought in by a council.

Wrexham Council’s Executive Board met for a virtual meeting on Tuesday to discuss the renewal of the Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) to control dog fouling in the area.

The PSPO ended on March 1 and was unable to be renewed due to Covid-19.

Cllr Mark Pritchard said: “Unfortunately, and I say unfortunately, there’s a small percentage of people who don’t support the council in what we want to achieve with a public order in the form of litter, anti-social behaviour, dog fouling and lots more.

“That’s why the order is in front of you today, because a small minority have to be dealt with because they don’t adhere to good behaviour.

“An example, where I live, unfortunately some people who walk their dog allow them to mess on football pitches, it’s unacceptable and wish it would stop.

“I’m sure you are having the same problems with anti-social behaviour, rowdiness and dog fouling like we all have. I like public and civil liberties and it’s important to note, we only have to bring these extreme measures in when we have to.

“It’s been well covered in the past, lots of you have been in touch, pushing when this order is going to be renewed and the reason why we couldn’t bring it in sooner is because of covid 19.”

The PSPO will ensure public land is kept free from dog fouling and that dog owners act responsibly to keep their pets under control in public areas.

In a document given to council members, it said the PSPO will require dog owners to remove their dog’s faeces from all public places, exclude dogs from bowling green playing surfaces and marked pitches as well as fenced children’s play areas.

Dogs must also be placed on a lead when directed to and place dogs on a lead around visitor centres and car parks as well as a public road and pavement.

The report reads: “PSPOs are designed to stop individuals or groups committing anti-social behaviour in a public space. They form part of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. Councils issue a PSPO after consultation with the Police, Police and Crime Commissioner and other relevant bodies. They can be enforced by Police Officers, Police Community Support Officers, Council Officers and other Officers authorised by the Council.”

Risks outlined in the report stated whether or not the section of the PSPO will be workable and enforceable in practice.

Cllr Dana Davies asked what was being done to ‘mitigate’ that risk.

She added that although ‘Covid-19 had understandably taken priority’ what would be done in terms of enforcement.

She said: “We’ve only got a small enforcement team and we want clarity across the county that that enforcement team resource will not be fully used up in this. What’s the bigger picture looking like with regards to how we are going to mitigate against that risk.”

Since lockdown, the enforcement team has been working on a reduced basis but has been able to put more work into dog fouling and littering due to parking and traffic being much quieter.

The meeting heard how moving forward, new opportunities could be placed in terms of using technology to increase enforcement and continue reacting to complaints.

Cllr Pritchard added that the pandemic has been a ‘difficult’ situation but has been handled successfully and moving forward, the enforcement team will ‘not just be for the town’.

He reassured members that the enforcement team will go ‘where the demand is’ and would be ‘fair and balanced’.

Members were also told that since March 1, when the PSPO ran out, no fixed penalty noticed had been issued, but warning noticed had continued. Once the PSPO was in place, fixed penalty notices could once again be given.

Members voted unanimously in favour for the new PSPO to be placed.