A major £15m crackdown in the city centre launched in November 2014 has seen more than 4,000 fines handed out to litterbugs, with thousands of pounds handed to the council.
Among those fined, 23 smokers have been fined a total of £4,000 for dropping cigarette butts.
They had all failed to pay a standard £80 fine within two weeks, which would have allowed them to escape prosecution.
Most were fined around £200 – and all but one had to also pay court costs of £118 and a victim surcharge of £20.
The vast majority of those found guilty faced a total bill of more than £300. The total owed to the council and the courts following the bumper magistrates session was £7,312.
Just three people appeared at Manchester magistrates’ court , with the remaining 20 failing to attend and being found guilty in their absence – or pleading guilty by post.
A major £15m crackdown in the city centre launched in November 2014 has seen more than 4,000 fines handed out to litterbugs, with thousands of pounds handed to the council.
And hundreds more have been hauled before the courts after refusing to pay on-the-spot fines.
A dedicated team of litter-busters work seven days a week looking out for people flouting the rules.
Most notices are issued on Market Street, High Street and Piccadilly Gardens.
As part of the crackdown, council bosses have installed nearly 700 new litter and recycling bins in the city centre.
Manchester council’s executive member for neighbourhoods, Nigel Murphy said: “These cases demonstrate that we take littering on our streets extremely seriously.
“Illegal littering will not be tolerated in Manchester and those caught should expect to be punished.
“As these successful prosecutions demonstrate, some smokers apparently don’t think that discarded cigarette butts count as litter, but in fact, they make up a huge amount of the litter we have to collect from Manchester streets.
“Changing people’s behaviour is important in tackling this issue and enforcement is only one part of our long-term campaign to reduce littering in Manchester.
“We work with a range of partners, including local businesses and community groups, to encourage city centre visitors and residents to have a more responsible attitude to litter.
“With more than 700 litter bins in the city centre – all of which have an ashtray attached – there’s no excuse for people to drop their waste in our streets.”
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