A consultation on proposals that would give Parks Police in Wandsworth the power to hand out on-the-spot fines has been launched.

Currently some of the borough's larger green spaces have bylaws which cover anti-social behaviour.

If a PP officer wants to enforce the law, he or she must liaise with town hall lawyers in order to issue a summons, obtain and prepare witness statements and prepare the case for court.

Instead of court summonses, the proposals would allow officers to issue a £80 fine and the offender, if they pay it, would not have to attend court.

The council’s community safety spokesperson Councillor Jonathan Cook said residents "value having a uniformed presence" in their open spaces and argues the move would cut down paper work and allows officers more time to patrol.

He said: "An £80 fine is a perfectly suitable and adequate way of dealing with less serious issues like dangerous cycling rather than the costly and time consuming alternative of taking cases to court.

"And if people feel they have been unfairly penalised or wrongly accused they will still have the option of having their case heard in court.

"This important safeguard guarantees their right to a fair and impartial hearing of the evidence."

The open spaces in question are Battersea Park, Garratt Green, Tooting Common, Wandsworth Common and Wandsworth Park.

Complete the consultation, which runs until Sunday, September 3, here.