Fly tipping is anti-social and ruins our beautiful county, so it’s annoying to discover in a recent government report that of the 5,041 fly tipping cases reported, only nine of these incidents resulted in a fine.

Acting Labour Group leader Scott Dickinson said: “When we talk to constituents we know how angry they get at the total disregard fly tippers have for the county.

“We’d expect to see tougher action by the council. It’s unbelievable to find out that a tiny 0.18 per cent of the fly tipping cases reported resulted in a fine.

“In the country as a whole, just 0.39 per cent of fly tipping incidents resulted in a fine but in Northumberland it’s less than half of that. It’s very disappointing, to say the least.

“A county that sends a message that fly tipping will not be tolerated and people who are thoughtless enough to carry out this activity will be punished with a fixed penalty notice is surely a deterrent.

“What message does it send to perpetrators if they know they are likely to get off scot-free with this extremely thoughtless and anti-social behaviour?

“We’re calling on the council leaders to explain why their performance in this area has been so poor and tell us what they’re going to do about it.

“They need to take much firmer action; it’s what residents in Northumberland would expect.”