New rules ringfencing the money
raised from fixed penalty notices for fly-tipping and littering
to be spent on local clean-up and enforcement come into force
from tomorrow (Monday 1 April), Recycling Minister has announced.
Fixed penalty notice receipts
for certain environmental anti-social behaviour offences must now
be reinvested locally in clean-up and enforcement – meaning cash
from perpetrators helps communities beat the blight of
fly-tipping and litter.
This would see the money paid
by criminals go directly back into repairing the damage from
these crimes or into enforcement efforts to prevent similar
incidents from happening again. This could include the funding of
additional enforcement officers to crack down on litter and
fly-tipping.
Recycling Minister
Robbie Moore said:
“Litter louts and career waste
criminals need to know we are cracking down hard. Their
inexcusable crimes spoil communities, create dangers for children
and threaten wildlife.
“We've already increased the
maximum fines for these damaging crimes and now money raised from
bringing them to justice will ensure more enforcement and help to
clear up their sickening mess.”
Country Land and
Business Association President Victoria Vyvyan
said:
“We welcome these regulations
that ringfence receipts for enforcement and clean-up operations,
and urge local authorities to use the revenue to help clear up
waste dumped on public and farm land, and clamp down hard on
offenders.
“With one million incidents on
public land alone last year, fly-tipping blights communities and
the landscape, damaging the environment, risking public health
and costing taxpayers thousands to clear up.
“As well as incidents on public
land, farmers are also victims of fly-tipping and have to pay to
have dumped waste removed from their land, only adding to the
injustice. Therefore fixed penalty notice receipts must be used
to help clear up incidents on both public and private
land.”
On 27 March 2023, DLUHC and the
Home Office published the Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan,
setting out the government's approach to tackling antisocial
behaviour. The changes which come into effect today, along with
other measures, will encourage councils to take a more robust
approach to litter and fly-tipping enforcement – and deliver
further action to tackle antisocial
behaviour.
In 2022/23, councils dealt with
1.08 million fly-tipping incidents and issued 69,000 fixed
penalty notices, along with other enforcement
actions.
The government wants councils
to take a much tougher approach to this type of anti-social
behaviour. Taking proportionate and effective enforcement action
against people who intentionally or carelessly damage their
environment is a practical step local authorities can take to
change behaviour and deter others from
offending.
The changes build on wider
actions to give local authorities a range of powers to tackle
fly-tipping. Councils can issue on-the-spot fines to fly-tippers
and can stop, search, and seize vehicles suspected of being used
for fly-tipping. The upper limit of these on-the-spot fines
was increased to £1,000 in
July 2023. Funding of almost £1.2 million to help more than 30
councils combat fly-tipping, such as by installing
CCTV, has also been
provided in recent years, with a further £1m
to be awarded in the spring. We are also consulting key
stakeholders on statutory litter enforcement guidance,
progressing another commitment in the ASB Action Plan.
