Readers who have followed Cllr John Duffy's attempts to get the Kingdom Ltd contract with Brent Council properly scrutinised LINK LINK will be interested in tonight's Panorama (8.30pm BBC1 and then iplayer) which focuses on the company's operations.
Pre-broadcast publicity from the BBC LINK states:
Pre-broadcast publicity from the BBC LINK states:
One officer from Kingdom Services, a leading enforcement company, claimed that his bonus one month was £987.
Other officers were filmed handing out £75 fines for tiny pieces of dropped orange peel and poured-away coffee.
Kingdom told Panorama that its competency allowance was not a paid incentive for officers to issue fines.
Littering is a crime, but if you pay the fine you can avoid a criminal record.
Councils are increasingly using private companies such as Kingdom, based in Cheshire, to enforce the Environmental Protection Act.
Kingdom currently has about 28 contracts with local authorities and last year saw its profits jump 30% to £9m.
The company frequently splits the proceeds of the fines with the councils.