There have been calls for barbeques and even alcohol to be banned from parks in Liverpool following shameful scenes of broken glass and burnt bins in Sefton Park this weekend.
Appalling amounts of litter and waste were left strewn across the famous south Liverpool beauty spot, with recycling bins appearing to have caught fire from thrown away disposable barbeques. The scenes came after people headed to the park to enjoy the hot weather.
The Friends of Sefton Park group, which regularly organises litter picks, spent over an hour filling up eight bags of rubbish before they ran out of bags. Andrea Ku, chair of the group, said this was far from a one off.
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And she is correct. In recent years the ECHO has sadly been forced to run countless stories featuring grim images of mess and waste left scattered around parks by lazy and selfish people. Understandably these images, like the ones from Saturday night, spark anger and sadness from all those who care deeply about Liverpool's extensive network of parks and green spaces.
The latest scenes have led some to question whether disposable barbeques or even alcohol should be banned from being used and consumed within Liverpool's parks. So we decided to ask our readers what they thought about such an idea and whether it could work or even be implemented.
Responding to our social media survey, there appeared to be a lot of support for the idea of banning disposable barbeques, or at least providing a specified area where these activities should take place. Rachel Rogers: "People don't need a BBQ to enjoy time in the park, what's wrong with a picnic? All those scorched patches of grass are awful." Edgar Gregory simply said: "Yes. Parks are ruined by barbecues."
Ally Llahsram pointed out that not everyone has a garden and should be able to enjoy a barbeque at a park, but that this should be done in a 'designated area.' Hayley Brew had a similar view, she said: "No parks need to be more family friendly. If you go to Scotland have tables with metal trays attached to fit throw away BBQs in designated areas." Pauline Barr was less forgiving, she said: "Yes fire and alcohol do not go together A lot of kids these days are not responsible and definitely after few bevvies will not clean up."
While people were split on whether banning barbeques or booze from parks was the right idea - or even possible to do - one thing all our respondents could agree on was that those who fail to clean up after themselves in our city's parks are ruining it for others. Angela Hughes: "It wouldn’t be a problem if people took their rubbish home. It’s more about the attitude of people that they think they have a right to do whatever they want and that it’s not their problem to tidy up as someone else can do it. I would say it’s a respect thing and that’s something that is abundantly missing from a lot of people lately."
Roy Fearon added: "It's people that are the issue. You get far to many idiots who don't have any respect nowadays." Bernie Cooke added: "Ban the people who abuse the privilege, as usual the majority suffer for the minority."
Speaking about the scenes in Sefton Park this weekend, Andrea Ku from the Friends group said: "Not everyone litters. The large majority of people in the park have filled those bins and put their rubbish next to them. It's the small minority. They're the ones that need their awareness raising and a bit of education."
