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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the enforcement powers of the Environment Agency.

The Environment Agency publishes an annual Review of Activities Regulated by the Environment Agency setting out details of enforcement action taken. The most recent of these reports was published in March this year and sets out statistics demonstrating the effectiveness of the regulatory activities of the Agency, including enforcement.

In relation to waste crime, the Environment Agency’s has a wide range of investigatory and enforcement powers, including powers of entry, powers to search and seize evidence and to access communications data. Further regulatory reform is underway. The Environment Agency also has powers to sanction offenders using Variable Monetary Penalties (VMPs).

In addition to the formal review, individual incidents and criminal investigation provide the regulators opportunity to learn lessons and identify further ways to frustrate the efforts of those who are determined to make profits, breaching environmental controls with no regard to their impact on the environment and local people.