Oral Answers to Questions

Ashley Dalton Excerpts

Thursday 22nd October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Emma Hardy]

I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will have noticed that, since we came into power, we have been taking enforcement seriously. Fines just this year include a £7.1 million fine and a £2.4 million fine for illegal sewage pollution against Southern Water and a £7.87 million fine against South West Water—and I have not even included all the Ofwat enforcement undertakings and the fines included there. He will have heard what our Prime Minister said: we are strengthening our water Bill and will bring it forward soon. We are not taking options off the table, and we are serious about fixing the mess that we were left to deal with when we came into power.

[Ashley Dalton (West Lancashire) (Lab)]

3. What steps she is taking to help tackle waste crime.

[The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Dame Angela Eagle)]

Waste crime is fuelled by serious organised crime, and it is blighting our communities. We are tackling it: since April, we have made 21 arrests and shut down 339 illegal waste sites. Police operations have triggered more than 30 criminal investigations, and we are strengthening enforcement and disrupting those who are profiting from waste crime.

[Ashley Dalton]

Illegal waste dumping at the Simonswood industrial estate in my constituency has long blighted the residents in West Lancashire and Kirkby. My right hon. Friend the Member for Knowsley (Anneliese Midgley) and I have worked together on tackling the Simonswood stink, and we welcomed the Environment Agency’s permit revocation earlier this year, but the mound remains, as do the odour and dust. What assurances can the Government give that Simonswood will be considered in the next phase of the illegal waste site clearance scheme?

[Dame Angela Eagle]

I know how tirelessly my hon. Friend and her neighbour, my right hon. Friend the Member for Knowsley, have campaigned on this issue. Waste crime blights local communities, and the Government are committed to tackling it. The Environment Agency continues to investigate activity at Simonswood, and the site will be considered for clearance alongside other illegal waste sites.