This is how many coronavirus fines Lancashire Police has issued since March

Huge number of fixed penalty notices for people breaking government restrictions
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

More than 1,500 fines have been handed out by police for breaches of Covid-19 laws in Lancashire since they came into force, figures show.

Home Secretary Priti Patel defended the policing of lockdown breaches across the country, warning that officers “will not hesitate” to take action to safeguard the national recovery effort.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Data published by the National Police Chiefs Council shows a total of 1,506 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) were issued by Lancashire Constabulary between March 27 and December 20.

Total of 1,506 fixed penalty notices were issued by Lancashire Constabulary between March 27 and December 20Total of 1,506 fixed penalty notices were issued by Lancashire Constabulary between March 27 and December 20
Total of 1,506 fixed penalty notices were issued by Lancashire Constabulary between March 27 and December 20

Of these, 856 were issued for breaches of coronavirus laws brought in during the first few months of the pandemic, 101 were linked to the tiered alert system introduced in October, and 335 to the national lockdown which began in November.

Police forces across England and Wales have issued 32,329 FPNs since March, though the NPCC said there had been a downward trend in recent weeks.

The peak occurred during the Easter bank holiday in April, with 3,288 handed out that week.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

By contrast, the most recently weekly figures showed 542 tickets were handed out in the week to December 17, compared to 821 in the previous seven days.

Although the NPCC figures do not cover the Christmas and New Year period, Home Secretary Priti Patel said last week that more than 800 fines had been handed out over the previous 14 days.

She also defended the way police have handed out fines for lockdown breaches so far, warning that officers “will not hesitate” to take action.

Ms Patel said: “The vast majority of the public have supported this huge national effort and followed the rules.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“But the tragic number of new cases and deaths this week shows there is still a need for strong enforcement where people are clearly breaking these rules to ensure we safeguard our country’s recovery from this deadly virus.”

Of the fines in Lancashire, there were 42 for failing to wear a face covering when required, and 34 for breaching international travel rules.

There were also 13 for breaking business regulations and 12 for gatherings held of more than 30 people.

NPCC chairman Martin Hewitt said enforcement shouldn’t always equal police involvement or a fine being handed out.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But he added: “It is right for officers to be inquisitive about why individuals may be away from home.

“Those who blatantly ignore the regulations should expect to receive a fixed penalty notice, and we’ll target our resources towards those who commit the most serious breaches and put others at risk through their behaviour.”

Preliminary crime figures also published by the NPCC on Friday showed that total crime in England and Wales was down 12 per cent in November last year.

Mr Hewitt said crime remains lower than at the same point in 2019, but that the demand on the police service is significant.