AN AUTHOR turned anti-litter campaigner has blamed poor people for trashing his Sussex village.

David Sedaris, who obsessively carries out eight-hour litter picks in Pulborough, said many discarded items he finds were “the cheapest”.

The American author and broadcaster, who denied being a snob, has a council rubbish truck named after him in honour of his efforts.

While giving evidence at a House of Commons inquiry into littering, he said: “If I am looking at things I find at the side of the road, I haven’t found opera tickets.

“There’s a Waitrose not far from me. I found one Waitrose bag last year. There’s a Tesco Metro that I think of as a litter-supply store not far by and I find Tesco bags all the time.

“I don’t find containers that nuts came in. It’s fast food, crisps, candy bars.

“Of all the cigarettes I find, I find more Mayfair than any other brand. And are Mayfair not the cheapest cigarettes?”

“I’m not trying to sound like a snob but there is no denying the things you’ve found.”

Mr Sedaris confessed to the communities and local government select committee that when he used to smoke he thought nothing of dropping a cigarette butt on the street.

He joked that people in passing cars littered in anger as they drove through places they could not afford to live in.

He also suggested authority figures like teachers and judges were to blame for poor education on littering.

He described how one headteacher said asking children to pick up litter would be “demeaning”.

Mr Sedaris added: “Why should everyone have to live in a teenager’s bedroom?

“It’s bad for your spirit – I don’t care where you live or how much money you have – to have to walk through filth is no way to live.”