Police in north Wales will be able to issue on-the-spot fines to curb anti-social behaviour under a Home Office initiative.

The pilot scheme will be in use throughout Denbighshire and Conwy, from midnight on Sunday, for the next 12 months.

The scheme will allow police officers more flexibility in the way that offenders are dealt with

Chief Inspector Mike Mullis

The scheme - the first of its kind in Wales - lets officers issue people, caught causing nuisance crimes, with a fixed penalty ticket of between �40 and �80.

The initiative is already being trialled in the west Midlands, Essex and the Croydon division of the Metropolitan Police.

Under the scheme, police officers will not lose the power to bring an individual to court but will be able to use the notices for minor violations.

These offences include:

• Being drunk on the highway
• Raising a false alarm to the fire brigade
• Trespassing on a railway
• Throwing fireworks in a public place
• Wasting police time
• Throwing stones at trains
• Attempting to buy alcohol in a pub for someone under 18
• Disorderly while drunk
• Causing annoyance over the telephone
• Using threatening words or behaviour

Chief Inspector Mike Mullis of North Wales Police said that officers throughout the division had undergone rigorous training for the initiative.

"This scheme will enable us to improve the quality of life for the communities we serve and will help us to reduce the fear of crime within the two counties," he said.

"It will also allow police officers more flexibility in the way that offenders are dealt with.

Street patrols will impact on nuisance crimes

"It should go some way to lighten the paperwork load, both officers and support staff have to complete under the present system."

Chief Inspector Mullis will be monitoring the on-the-spot fine system to see if the amount of crime committed is cut.

"I will constantly be assessing the scheme over the coming months and will be keeping a close eye on the number of tickets dispatched and the number of offences, and will be comparing them to the figures for last year.

"That information will then be forwarded to the Home Office," he added.

The scheme was introduced in the three other forces on 12 August.

Delays in implementing the scheme in north Wales were caused by tickets not being printed in both Welsh and English languages.

The scheme is in accordance with the Human Rights Act, as people issued with a fixed-penalty notice are able to seek trial if they challenge the fine.