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This blog post was published under the 2015-2024 Conservative Administration

https://deframedia.blog.gov.uk/2019/02/04/mail-on-fly-tipping-prosecutions/

Mail on fly-tipping prosecutions

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Image of waste pile.
Pic credit: Environment Agency

The Mail on Sunday ran a piece exploring the scope of fly-tipping in England, and the number of people prosecuted for the crime.

Reporters Ben Ellery and Nic North say that in 2017/18, one in 450 incidents result in a prosecution.

Local councils have the power to issue fixed penalty notices for small scale fly-tipping – a more efficient and proportionate alternative to prosecutions. We have issued guidance to councils on how to use these powers in a fair and proportionate manner.

A Defra spokesperson said:

The latest figures show our actions to crack down on fly-tippers are delivering results, with no increase in the number of incidents for the first time in five years.

Councils are using powers to hand out on-the-spot fines to fly-tippers to good effect, and we have made it easier for vehicles suspected of being used for fly-tipping to be stopped, searched and seized.

We also recently introduced new fixed penalty notices for householders who pass their waste to a fly-tipper, as we continue our efforts to crack down on those who blight our landscapes.

There was a decrease of 1% in fly-tipping incidents for 2017/18, following annual increases since 2013/14. Total incidents involving household waste decreased by 4 and the number of fly-tipping incidents on highways decreased by 7%.

Over the same time period, local authority enforcement actions increased by 4%, and the number of fixed penalty notices issued by councils went up by 20%.

We recently published an ambitious Resources and Waste Strategy to overhaul our waste system. This sets out a new strategic approach to tackling crime, focusing on preventing it from happening in the first place, detecting it when it does occur, and deterring would-be criminals and poor performers from engaging again.

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