'Welcome to a filthy, littered dump called Britain'

“The situation is dire,” said John Read of Clean Up Britain. “We have a serious problem with litter in the UK. I’d go so far as to say it's an epidemic.”

Drive along Britain’s roads recently and you’ll probably have noticed something: Litter. And lots of it.

Cigarette butts, beer bottles, cans, fast food wrappers, bin bags, plastic sheeting and white goods -- to name just a few -- are strewn in verges and laybys up and down the country.

“Britain is a naturally beautiful country, but right now it looks like a landfill,” said Read, who has campaigned on the issue for more than 12 years. “It's shameful for international visitors to come here and see how filthy our country is.”

“The rubbish is a terrible statement about a country in decline,” he added.

In 2015, a Parliamentary Select Committee compared England with countries in Europe, Japan and North America, concluding it was arguably the most littered nation in the West. 

Not only an eye sore in Britain's picturesque countryside, roadside litter also has a devastating environmental impact.

Toxins from the waste leach into the soil and waterways, while the RSPCA – an animal protection charity – says it receives 10 calls a day about animals affected by litter.

Responsibility for Britain’s unsightly roadsides lies with local authorities, who typically own verges and lay-bys of minor roads, while National Highways is obligated to collect litter from England's motorways and major roads. 

Read claimed the extent of the problem meant they were “breaking the law every day”, while simultaneously allowing offenders to get away scot-free by not enforcing fines on offenders.

Under UK law, landowners and occupiers have a duty to keep land clear of litter and refuse for which they are