Proposals for £100 fines for street urination, defecation and dog fouling have taken their next step following hundreds of incidents, many of them committed by night-time revellers according to officials.

Plans for a new public space protection order (PSPO) which would grant the council powers to issue the penalties are set for consultation in December.

A City of York Council Safer Communities Decision Session on Wednesday, November 13 heard revellers urinating in shop doorways made up many of the 4,194 incidents reported in 2023-4.

Council safer communities spokesperson Cllr Michael Pavlovic told the meeting the scale of the issue was shocking and welcomed the fines to try and crack down on the vile incidents.

The proposals come as 562 reports were made to York BID in connection with street urination in March, the highest monthly total in 2023-4 according to official figures.

A further 228 reports were made in March in connection with ‘human biohazard fluid’ which includes vomit, with 2,058 cleaning requests made.

Wednesday’s meeting heard many of the reports came from business owners who arrived to work in the morning to find the mess left from the night before.

There have been 280 cleaning requests made in connection with faeces, including from dogs, since the start of 2024, an average of 35-a-month.

But only one fixed penalty notice was issued for dog fouling in 2023, with eight handed out since 2021.

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There has been one prosecution in relation to urination and defecation since March this year, with three in 2023-4, 20 the year before and four and eight cautions in 2021-2.

Cllr Michael PavlovicCllr Michael Pavlovic

Council Community Safety Manager Tanya Lyon told Wednesday’s meeting the new fines would provide a more immediate and efficient alternative to taking perpetrators to court.

She added the PSPO would also allow the council to fine people who fail to keep their dogs under control.

Cllr Pavlovic told the meeting the incidents were detracting from the city.

The executive member said: “It’s vile and its a thankless task for the people who have to clean up this mess.

“This is something that no one wants to see whether they’re a resident or a tourist, but sadly happens particularly when you have a vibrant night-time economy.

“The fines are not about introducing a punitive regime, they’re about changing people’s behaviour.”