Councillors will vote on whether to take Greater Manchester police’s advice that proposed £100 fines are unenforceable

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

A council looks likely to abandon plans to ban swearing in a town centre after police warned it was unenforceable.

Rochdale borough council in Greater Manchester had proposed a £100 fine for anyone caught swearing in public via the introduction of a public spaces protection order.

Earlier this year, the local authority began a consultation on a PSPO for Rochdale town centre, largely designed to cut down on begging and other antisocial behaviour.

It included a clause under which a person caught “using foul and abusive language” would be warned, moved on or given an on-the-spot fine.

Greater Manchester police said it supported the PSPO, but advised the council to drop the swearing ban “given the issues with enforcement”, according to a report circulated to councillors this week.

GMP argued that “there is already legislation in place to deal with people/persons using foul and abusive language in a manner that causes or is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress”.

Councillors will vote on Tuesday evening on whether to take the force’s advice at a full cabinet meeting.

They are being asked to vote in an amended PSPO, which drops the swearing prohibition, as well as a proposal to ban under-18s from the town centre between 11pm and 6am.

The amended PSPO outlaws begging, loitering, antisocial parking, playing loud music, loudly revving car engines, street drinking, unauthorised charity collections, skateboarding, cycling and scooting within a designated area. An individual caught doing any of these could receive a fine of up to £1,000, or £500 for street drinking.

Most locals and town centre businesses that responded to the consultation supported it, according to the report. These included Halifax building society, a jeweller on the high street, Boots, Marks & Spencer, TK Maxx and British Transport Police.

The council received 10 comments against the proposal from the Labour Campaign for Human Rights, the human rights organisation Liberty and various members of the public.

According to the council report, those opposed criticised the council for not helping the most vulnerable people and argued that the PSPO breaches the European convention on human rights.

“The council does acknowledge this is a sensitive issue which needs careful handling. However, evidence held by GMP and the council suggests that the majority of people currently involved in begging in the town centre are not homeless and all are being offered support,” the report said.

When the ban was first floated in March, Liberty said the plans would be difficult to enforce and could criminalise vulnerable people.

In response, the then council leader Richard Farnell said: “With all the horrific human rights abuses happening around the world right now, I would have thought Liberty had bigger things to worry about.

“We are clamping down on a small minority of antisocial ne’er-do-wells who drunkenly shout and swear and harangue shoppers in our town centre.”