Liberal Democrat Councillors have expressed dismay that nearly a half of all fixed penalty notices issued by the police for public disorder offences remain unpaid each year.

Liberal Democrat Leader Chris White said: ‘This is an astonishing figure. The public rightly assume that when the police issue a penalty it will be paid – not ignored. The excuse in part is that the paperwork is not always correctly completed – but this is simply not good enough.

‘There has to be rapid action to ensure that those committing criminal acts do not get away with non payment – whatever the reason.’

The figures came to light at a meeting in St Albans on Wednesday evening.