Don’t misunderstand me and my title. There is nothing wrong with do-gooders. Driven by a highly developed moral compass, their intentions are always good and their actions / activism is always positive, but there is just something about what do that really winds me up.

Let me explain…

It is actually a long-held view, that I have had for decades, but what sparked it off again today was when I watched a new segment and it talked about how, given the super-hot late-May Bank Holiday, that many predominately day-trippers visited the coast and left the beaches in the right state. Litter seemed to cover every square foot of the beach and in Cleethorpes where the report was centred there were plenty of bins. Admittedly, some of the bins were overloaded even though they were being emptied several times a day. Some visitors had bagged up their rubbish and left it right next to the bins and to some extent I can go with this, but leaving litter strewn all over the beach is another thing entirely.

Like the reporter said people go to enjoy the cleanliness as much as the destination and yet they themselves are the ones who are making such places an eyesore. I have often said that the biggest problem with tourism is the tourists themselves.

So, to my main point, in the next part of the segment. Along they came, the mighty beach patrol, armoured in their own self-righteousness and they meticulously cleaned up every scrap of rubbish over several hours and returned it to the state that it should have been left in. They were noble, they were right, they had a mission and they were effective.

So, what’s the problem I hear you ask?

Let me digress, as children we are - or should be - taught to tidy up our bedrooms (and for many this is the start of taking personal responsibility). Failure to keep our rooms tidy (by that I mean tidy up after play) led to a consequence. A toy may become unavailable for a time or some other reaction may follow. The point is that we learnt and whenever a parent cleaned up for us it made us lazy, indulgent and less responsible. If somebody else is going to do it why should I.

And this my friends is what is happening when we get well meaning do-gooders cleaning up the environment. Yes, it is noble, yes it makes a difference, but we are turning litterers into lazy indulgent and spoilt children who will never learn.

So what is the alternative?

Again, allow me to digress. Until the late 80s we had a shit problem in the UK in that dogs had free licence to do their business wherever they wanted and there was no culture of cleaning up after your dog. I must admit to being guilty of this myself (and another reason I don’t own a dog, as the fact that I live in a flat as previously mentioned a few days ago is that I really cannot bring myself to pick the shit up. For me it is disgusting, and that is  among the reasons why I don’t own a dog – no dog = no dog mess). Back in those days I did have a friend who at least dragged her dog into the gutters on the road to do its business so that at least it would get washed down the drains with the rain.

But then sometime around 1990 it changed and now it is an almost forgotten problem (cats are still a bit of a problem because they do what they want when they want and usually away from the watchful eyes of their owners unless they have been trained to use a litter tray). This change was affected by two significant things. Firstly, there was a massive advertising campaign that alerted owners to the consequences – including blindness – of coming even into close proximity of dog mess and especially in children because of the bacteria that is often present. Secondly the government introduced draconian fines for anybody not cleaning up after their dog(s). I think it was £500 at the time. These fines were rigorously enforced and then like magic the problem disappeared and the entire culture shifted.

So rather than the do-gooder beach patrol arriving to clean up, draconian fines should be introduced and enforced with a zero tolerance policy. Fines will pay for the upkeep of the area and pay the wages of the enforcement team and, guess what, no litter and the problem goes away.

Then the do-gooders can use their energy for something more meaningful than cleaning up after idiots. Things like visiting the elderly, working in a charity shop or being hands on with supporting the disabled and disenfranchised.

Indulging those who litter only makes the problem worse.

And on that note, and as always, stay safe and well my friends.