COUNCIL chiefs are "living in cloud cuckoo land" if they hope to collect £100 fines from York residents who put bin bags out too early, a leading councillor has claimed.

Labour environment spokesman Councillor David Horton hit out at the enforcement plans when they were discussed for the first time at the Guildhall last night.

But the ruling Liberal Democrats on City of York Council said on-the-spot fines will stop rubbish being left out for days and help spruce up terraced areas across city.

The £100 early bin bag fine is part of a raft of proposals outlined by the Government in a bid to clean up neighbourhoods. Currently, if the council takes court action people can be hit with a £1,000 fine and a criminal record.

Coun Horton, on the bin-bag fine, told the meeting: "If we try and enforce this we will have all sorts of bother. People may refuse to pay then end up going to court anyway. The £100 fine is pie in the sky - we are living in cloud cuckoo land if we think we are going to get it."

But environment executive member Coun Andrew Waller said the fines would save officer time and hammer home the problem to persistent offenders, who could not be given free reign to dump bags days early.

Updated: 09:53 Thursday, September 09, 2004