£140,000 to remove graffiti in Hull
A GROUP campaigning on behalf of taxpayers in the city is calling for more action to prevent graffiti.
The call, from the Taxpayers' Alliance, comes after it was revealed Hull City Council spent almost £140,000 on removing graffiti over the past two years.
Susie Squire, campaign manager of the group, described the bill as "staggering".
Ms Squire told the Mail: "It would be far better for policing to prevent this vandalism and keep the town free from graffiti in the first place.
"If big clean-ups are needed, the best people for the job are convicts and offenders themselves, rather than council employees paid out of the pocket of ordinary families."
Figures obtained by the Mail under the Freedom of Information Act revealed over the 2006-07 financial year, the council's central cleansing team spent about £68,250 on chemicals or staff wages.
The figure increased to £70,000 over the past year.
Now, the city council is hoping a pilot scheme involving anti-graffiti paint will be rolled out across the city to help the problem.
The paint is applied after graffiti has been removed, making future graffiti easier to clean up.
A spokesperson for Hull City Council said: "The council will continue to work with its partners to reduce instances of graffiti. However as it is difficult to catch offenders in the act we need the help of the public.
"The Wyke area team, supported by additional funding from the Wyke Area Committee's Community Safety Budget, has commenced a graffiti removal initiative.
"Members of the community are being equipped with the skills and tools required to remove graffiti and apply anti-graffiti paint to problem areas, so any future graffiti can be removed more quickly and cheaply.
"It is hoped the lessons learned in the Wyke area can be used to reduce the problem elsewhere in the city."
A spokesman for Hull Probation Service said criminals could be ordered by courts to clean up graffiti.
He said: "If someone is given unpaid work as part of their community sentence, one of the things they could be put to do is to clean up graffiti, clear parks and pick up litter."
Call the council on (01482) 300300 to report graffiti in your area.
24 Comments
View all
by steve, newcastle
Thursday, November 13 2008, 8:56PM
“how quick we are to lump every one and thing in to one box , while graffiti tagging is not nice nor wanted not all graffiti is bad art , do we all like the same style of art no did people in the day like rock and roll no , we are all ways quick to judge what we dont like or want to try and understand , when skate boards got on peoples never ohh lets build them a park, bmx bkes lets build them a park get them of the street , so why is it so far fetched to build a wall out tthe way for these people to use . hey if you take the blinkers off you may evab see some thing you like, or yes lets hang them and drive it more on to the streets , after all we dont undertsnad it so it must be bad”
by Ernesto, Hull
Tuesday, October 21 2008, 9:57PM
“Stop ars*ing about HCC. Just provide a few walls in different area of the city where these people can spray their "art". By the way, all art is "art".
Provide them with their own whitewash and they may suprise you and gladly wash the previous art off to make their own.
Yes it will cost money. Not much in the grand scheme think.”
by Christopher, Swanland
Tuesday, October 21 2008, 12:25PM
“Scruffy Hull”
by jade, hull
Tuesday, October 21 2008, 11:04AM
“what is the point in cleaning it up...? fresh slate soo they can do it all again. well what a waste of money...! theres no point the council just love wasting money around this city...!”
by Dave, Not in Hull
Tuesday, October 21 2008, 6:06AM
“Wack graffiti is wack,
Good graffiti is bad,
Go and find a disused warehouse to paint,
bring back corporal national caning for this VERMIN, because they are SCUM, send them to Zeus in a tax-payer's yacht-cum-Netto trolley and furnish their eyesockets in high grade waste plutonium, it's the only fourth way, bluddy grunting sgallywags the lot of them!”
by Bob, Hull
Monday, October 20 2008, 8:02PM
“"The... " you're a wind-up merchant So you admit to graffiti - therefore you owe the taxpayers £140K - pay up!!”
by Graham walters, Hull
Monday, October 20 2008, 6:20PM
“I agree a little bit of public humiliation is due for these low lifes. A few twangs with the birch is a good idea, although taking an item that is dear to them and destroying it would also hit home.”
by the, above
Monday, October 20 2008, 5:18PM
“Bob, Hull i take it your a middle class scumbag am i right you slimeball? do us all a favour and leave this country your not wanted”
by the, above
Monday, October 20 2008, 5:11PM
“personaly i like graffiti so save the cash and lets see more”
by The artist formally known as ..., HULL
Monday, October 20 2008, 4:17PM
“I like writing on walls - it reminds me of my previous occupation ............... its good to know all you hard working fools paid £140k for my work as an artist x”