Spitting in public will be a thing of the past if a South Woodford man gets his way and Redbridge Council follow his lead.

Daniel Eisen, 35, of Carnarvon Road, believes more and more people are unashamedly spitting on pavements and streets around the area and wants something done about it.

He has written to the BBC because he believes footballers on their Match of the Day programme encourage the practice.

And his efforts to free the borough of the nasty habit could win the backing of Redbridge Council.

A spokesman said the council is keeping a close eye on Enfield Council’s efforts to outlaw spitting in public.

Mr Eisen said: “I’ve seen people doing it walking in the street, I’ve seen school kids do it at bus stops.

“It’s considered natural behaviour and I ask myself where has it come from?

“The only thing I can think of is TV and sports people and footballers.”

Mr Eisen, who says he counted 10 examples of public spitting in a 15 minute walk in South Woodford, believes BBC editors could cut shots of footballers letting fly with spit from their highlights package. He said: “It’s the sort of behaviour that’s learned.

“It’s not just schoolkids, I’ve seen 20 or 30-somethings do it. They learned it from somewhere and that’s the only place you see it frequently.”

He has not received a reply from the BBC.

Enfield Council wrote to the Department of Communities and Local Government in February asking for permission to ban spitting in public places.

A Redbridge Council spokesman said: “Spitting should always be discouraged in public places.

“Although we are not currently asking for permission to introduce a by-law to ban spitting, we will be closely monitoring the progress of Enfield Council.”

The BBC has not provided a response to enquiries from the Recorder.

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