Some are "just out of school"
Newton Abbot’s MP says young police officers aren’t capable of using their judgement in deciding whether people are guilty of breaking restrictions on movement.
Anne-Marie Morris says some of her constituents claimithey’ve been told that if they have a garden they can’t walk their dogs. She believes officers "just out of school" shouldn't make such decisions, which should be left to senior police.
The Devon and Cornwall force is issuing about 30 fines a day on average to people they think are making unnecessary journeys. Chief constable Shaun Sawyer says the national police guidelines on travelling for exercise is the worst he’s ever seen – but they mainly want to stop people coming into the county.
Their interviews are in the video on this page.
The £60 tickets are reduced to £30 if paid promptly, but anyone caught a second time can see the fine doubled, and then again, up to £960. Non-payment can result in a criminal conviction too.