Tougher penalties needed to curb surge in fly-tipping, say councils
I hate fly-tippers with a passion, having just taken 4 bags of a surfeit of Christmas rubbish to the tip! This article tells us:
Fly-tipping has increased by 50% in the last six years, prompting councils to call for much bigger penalties for offenders.
More than a million incidents of illegal rubbish dumping were recorded in the financial year 2018-19, which cost councils £58m to clean up. Most incidents involved household waste being jettisoned from cars or vans by the side of a road.
The maximum fine for fly-tipping is £50,000 and/or a five-year prison sentence. But 83% of the court-imposed fines in the last six years were below £500. Only two people have been given the maximum fine since new guidelines were introduced in 2014.
Councils are handing out more on-the-spot fines and pursuing more prosecutions. Offending vehicles can be seized and in some cases are crushed. The number seized jumped to 207 last year. However, councils have lost 60% of their central government funding since 2010, meaning less money is available for action against fly-tippers.
“Fly-tipping is not only an illegal, inexcusable and ugly blight on society, it is a serious public health risk,” said David Renard, the environment spokesman for the Local Government Association and leader of Swindon borough council. “Councils are determined to crack down on the problem. However, tougher sentences are needed to act as a stronger deterrent to criminals dumping waste.