Search
06 Dec 2025
Search
06 Dec 2025
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.
Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.
If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter .
Support our mission and join our community now.
To continue reading this article, you can subscribe for as little as €0.50 per week which will also give you access to all of our premium content and archived articles!
Alternatively, you can pay €0.50 per article, capped at €1 per day.
Thank you for supporting Ireland's best local journalism!
Case dismissed over passenger littering
A Laois driver had their case dismissed in Portlaoise court after the driver blamed their passenger for littering.
The case was one of 25 taken by Laois County council over 2016, and was the only one dismissed in court.
Details were outlined by Laois County Council's director of services Gerry Murphy at the November meeting of Graiguecullen Portarlington district.
"One of the 25 was dismissed. The driver said a passenger threw the litter. In all other cases we had positive results in 2016," Mr Murphy said.
"That's hardly acceptable is it?" said Cathaoirleach, Cllr Tom Mulhall.
"It was one out of 25," answered the council director.
From January 1 to November 15, Laois County Council brought 25 cases of littering to court.
"There were 13 convictions. There were several warrants issued, and community service was handed out," Mr Murphy said, while confirming that the council cannot release names of those prosecuted.
The council spent €356k to monitor and enforce waste regulations this year, with €362 budgeted for 2017. In total over €3 million will be spent on waste and litter management in 2017 in Laois, including maintaining the landfill and recycling facilities and street cleaning.
In the UK, London introduced a law in 2012 whereby drivers can be fined up to £100 if anyone drops litter from their vehicle.
Under the Irish Litter Pollution act, where a vehicle is used in the commission of a littering offence, the registered owner, or the person using the vehicle at that time, can be guilty of an offence.
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1997/act/12/section/27/enacted/en/html#sec27
Subscribe or register today to discover more from DonegalLive.ie
Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.
Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.
This publication supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice of the Press Council. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at www.presscouncil.ie, Lo-call 1800 208 080 or email: info@presscouncil.ie.
