200 Covid fines issued by Cambridgeshire police in past month

The force issued 807 fixed penalty notices between March 27, 2020 and March 14, 2021.

This compares to 596 between March 27, 2020 and February 14, 2021 - a rise of 211.

Overall, two people have been fined for holding a gathering of more than 30 people, 30 for face covering breaches, 14 for international travel breaches and 10 for business regulations breaches.

The remaining fines relate to other breaches of the law.

In Lincolnshire, police have handed out 899 fixed penalty notices in total, while in Northamptonshire the figure is 2,756.

In total, police in England and Wales have processed a total of 94,368 fixed penalty notices for breaches of coronavirus restrictions up to March 14.

Chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, Martin Hewitt, speaking about the national picture, said: “While it is encouraging to see that the number of fines processed in the last month has decreased, a small number of people continue to defy the rules, putting themselves and other at risk of the virus.

“It is particularly frustrating to see the groups of selfish and irresponsible people organising and attending illegal parties and unlicenced music events – they clearly have no regard for the rules and we move quickly to enforcement in these cases.

“Looking ahead as restrictions start to ease we will be focusing our efforts on these types of large indoor gatherings. Any person who organises or attends these events clearly doesn’t need the regulations explaining to them and we will not hesitate to issue fines where necessary.

“As the rules change in the coming days, weeks and months we can expect crime, including violent crime, to return to pre-lockdown levels. All forces have robust plans in place to deal with violence and clamp down on violent offenders. The national operation to target people carrying weapons will run again this spring.

“The Government’s road map dates for coming out of lockdown does give people hope and some light at the end of the tunnel, but we cannot become complacent. It is vital people continue to follow the rules at each stage when restrictions are eased. Otherwise, we risk undermining our efforts up to now.

“Our officers will be more visible at key dates in the road map to engage with the public and keep explaining the restrictions which remain in place at the time, and we hope the public will continue to support us in our efforts to prevent the further spread of the virus.”