Just one more person fined by Bedfordshire police for breaking coronavirus rules

Bedfordshire police have fined just one person in the last month for breaking coronavirus restrictions, new figures show.

With just over 150 more fines issued across England and Wales in the last four weeks, the chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) said a small minority of people are not following the rules and putting lives at risk.

Data published by the NPCC shows one fixed penalty notice was issued by Bedfordshire Police between August 18 and September 21 – bringing the total number of fines since March 27 to 280.

None of these were due to breaches of the “rule of six” lockdown regulations, which came into effect on September 14, although there may be a lag in reporting so the number could change when figures are updated.

NPCC chairman Martin Hewitt said: “It is crucial that people do everything they can, including limiting social contact, to reduce the spread of coronavirus. The country is at a critical point, and personal choices will matter in the weeks and months to come.”

Police forces can issue a £60 penalty, reduced to £30 if paid within two weeks, for breaches of the lockdown rules – but just half of the fines handed out in England and Wales so far have been paid.

Bedfordshire police chief superintendent John Murphy said: “We all have a personal responsibility to play our part in minimising social interaction to stop the spread of this virus. You only have to look at how quickly it has spread in other countries, and in towns and cities across the UK to see how incredibly virulent and dangerous it is.

“The new ‘rule of six’ will assist us to be more proactive in reducing mass interactions, and will make it easier for police, and the public, to identify those who might be breaching the guidelines.

“We will continue with our approach of engaging with our communities to explain the rules, but we will take enforcement action where lawful directions are unheeded.

“Only this week we have issued a £10,000 fine to the manager of a venue where more than 100 people attended a wedding, and we won’t hesitate to take further action if people are not following the rules.”

Separate data published by the NPCC shows no fines have yet been recorded by Bedfordshire Police for people failing to self-isolate after returning from a country on the Government's quarantine list.

Just 38 of these fines have been issued across England and Wales, but NPCC figures showed hundreds of travellers suspected of breaking quarantine rules had not been traced.

Up to September 22, 4,114 cases were referred to police by health authorities.

Of these, 240 people were found not to live at the address they had given, and in 440 cases there was no answer when officers attended an address.

Bedfordshire police have also not given out any fines to people for failing to wear a face covering on public transport or in shops, with 89 elsewhere in England and Wales.