THE public cost of fly-tipping was spelled out to magistrates in Darlington today.

It is a blight on towns and the countryside, costing taxpayers millions of pounds a year to clear,

declared Amy Wennington, on behalf of Darlington Borough Council.

In that serious national context, the punishment handed out to Robert Carver for dumping a huge pile of waste in a country lane at Heighington seems rather lenient.

The cost of disposing of the rubbish legally would have been £277 but the fine for dumping it illegally was only £185. It is true that Mr Carver was also ordered to pay compensation to the council of £223, plus £85 costs and a £20 victim surcharge. Nevertheless, it is not much more than a slap on the wrist and stiffer penalties are required if the scourge of fly-tipping is to be stopped.

The bigger punishment for Mr Carver is the damaging publicity surrounding the case, and that is due in no small measure to the name given to his business.

Steptoe and Son was no doubt chosen to draw attention to Mr Carver's services. But it has also guaranteed national publicity for what would otherwise have been a very local offence in a County Durham village.

Mr Carver will surely be regretting that he didn't dump the name along with his waste.