PENDLE Council is showing the red card to rubbish by hitting litter louts hard in their wallet.

Monday, March 21 has been dubbed "Red Litter Day" for Pendle, when the authority will declare war on people leaving rubbish in the streets by launching its hard-hitting anti-litter campaign.

Anyone ruining the environment by dropping litter will be shown a big red card and hit with a £50 fine.

Executive member for the environment, Coun John David, is leading the campaign.

He said: "We are sending out a bugle call - dropping litter and dumping rubbish is something that we are not going to accept in Pendle. It is one of the things people in Pendle complain about most often.

"So we are responding to everyone who is fed up with a minority of people who couldn't care less.

"If people are happy to carry full fag packets, full crisp bags and full cans and bottles, why shouldn't they carry the empty ones home or at least to the next litter bin. There are well over 1,000 throughout Pendle.

"If they don't, the csouncil is forced to use our money as local taxpayers to clear the rubbish up. It is now time for them to join the majority of good citizens and we intend to encourage them to do just that. If they won't and are caught, they will be fined."

There will be no warnings given to offenders.

Instead more than 20 enforcement officers - existing staff who have been retrained - will keep a close check on town centres, parks and around schools and will dish out a £50 fixed penalty notice to anyone caught dropping litter.

The scheme includes cigarette ends and chewing gum as well as litter thrown from moving cars.

Bryan Thompson, the Council's Environmental Projects and Policy Manager, said: "There will be no warning given to people who drop litter. If an enforcement officer sees someone dropping litter they will request that person's name and address and a Fixed Penalty Notice will subsequently be issued by post.

There are almost 1,200 litter bins across Pendle and the Council has a policy to increase the number of bins each year, so there's no excuse for people to drop litter."