Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that U1 waste exemptions are not being used to dispose of waste illegally.

The Environment Agency undertakes a risk-based approach and may inspect U1 sites if it receives intelligence or complaints suggesting illegal activity.

The Government is currently reviewing the waste exemptions element within the environmental permitting regime to prevent the use of exemptions, including the U1 exemption, to cover illegal activity. A Government response will be published in the spring. The Environment Agency is also developing a charges scheme for 2024, which will help fund proactive compliance assessment at exempt sites.