Waltham Forest Council claims photos showing empty crisp packets in a man’s van are “misleading” after it came under fire for dishing out a £300 fine.

Stewart Gosling was ordered to pay up when he was caught driving his commercial van with a bag filled with empty crisp packets and water bottles from his lunch.

But after receiving a barrage of backlash for the fine, from both Mr Gosling and members of the public, the authority has defended itself.

Cllr Clyde Loakes, the deputy leader and cabinet member for the environment, said: “The photographs used in the media to illustrate this story are highly misleading.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

The "misleading" photograph.

“They do not show other waste items found at the time when the van was stopped.

“If waste is being stored in a trader’s van it is a legal requirement that they have a valid licence.

“Any waste that comes from a commercial activity is business waste.”

On the same day he was caught, May 23, the authority stopped 109 vans and issued fines to ten drivers who did not have the proper licence.

“The rules are clear,” he added. “We need to have a licence and the owner of the van has since applied to own one.

“Waltham Forest Council has a zero tolerance approach to the illegal transportation of commercial waste.”

East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

The council's photograph of the "other waste items."

The roofing contractor and father-of-four tried to appeal the fine but was unsuccessful.

He said: “It just aggravated me. It should be common sense. I had no idea you needed a waste licence, you have to be polite to these people but it annoyed me.

“I’ve done this job for over 20 odd years and I never carry waste on my jobs; I just use skips and licensed waste carriers in the local area.

“It seems a bit steep to be honest. A warning would have been more understandable.”

Waltham Forest Council could prosecute Mr Gosling over the unpaid fine, but he does not intend to pay it.

On BBC Radio 4’s flagship Today programme, John Humphrys quizzed both Mr Gosling and Cllr Loakes about the fine.

During the interview, Mr Gosling said the “other waste items” that Cllr Loakes referred to were not waste at all, but the materials he needed to go on and do his next roofing job that he always keeps in his van.

Last year there were over one million incidents of fly-tipping in England costing local authorities over £57 million to clear up.

Waltham Forest Council spent an estimated £380,000 clearing waste and rubbish dumped in the borough.