Four political parties fined over poster delay

FOUR political parties were issued with litter fines yesterday for allegedly failing to remove election posters since ballot day a fortnight ago.

Directors of elections with Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Labour Party and Sinn Féin were sent letters from Limerick City Council yesterday.

While other city councils reported few or no offences under legislation governing the removal of election material, Limerick said the “gloves were off” after litter wardens found posters still attached to lampposts. By yesterday evening, 12 offences had been recorded by city council inspectors.

The offending posters are national party material as opposed to belonging to individual candidates.

It is believed a number of party officials have contended their posters were removed from lampposts and hidden behind ditches and elsewhere without their permission. This may make any enforcement of the fines difficult.

Under legislation, posters are exempt from prosecution for seven days after the date of an election. Thereafter, the penalties of the Litter Pollution Act 1997 apply.

Offending parties face an initial on-the-spot fine of €125. The fine on summary conviction can be €3,000.

In Dublin, the city council yesterday said posters had still been spotted in 10 locations earlier this week but, in line with an extension of the removal deadline in its area, all parties had cooperated collecting their posters since then.