Oral Answers to Questions

David Williams Excerpts

Thursday 20th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Warinder Juss (Wolverhampton West) (Lab)]

7. What steps he is taking to tackle fly-tipping.

[David Williams (Stoke-on-Trent North) (Lab)]

14. What steps he is taking to tackle fly-tipping.

[Mr Will Forster (Woking) (LD)]

16. What steps he is taking to tackle fly-tipping.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mary Creagh]

I am interested to hear about the work my hon. Friend’s council is doing with drones. We use CCTV, but there could be lessons for other councils. In our manifesto, we committed to forcing fly-tippers to clean up their mess. We are seeking powers to issue statutory fly-tipping enforcement guidance so we have a consistent and effective approach, but it is clear that the waste carriers, brokers and dealers, and the exemption permitting regimes, are not fit for purpose. I have asked my officials to look at everything we can do to strengthen both of those.

[David Williams]

Fly-tipping is a blight on our communities, but in Stoke-on-Trent, our Labour-led council has worked tirelessly to turn things around. Under the Conservatives, residents were waiting for over a month for waste to be removed, but under the leadership of Jane Ashworth and Amjid Wazir, that response time is now under one week. However, councils cannot tackle the issue alone, so will the Minister outline what more the Government can do to support local councils to clamp down on fly-tipping, get tough on those who blight our streets, and create cleaner, greener communities for all?

[Mary Creagh]

It is interesting what a difference a change in council leadership makes. I commend Councillor Ashworth and Councillor Wazir on their excellent work. This Government will introduce mandatory digital waste tracking from April 2026, and I will update the House on progress in May 2025. If people want their streets to be cleaned up, the answer is clear: vote Labour.