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 (EA) publishes an annual Review of Activities Regulated by the EA 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 2018 the Government published the Noel Review: an independent review into serious and organised crime in the waste sector. The review made several recommendations for enhanced enforcement powers and regulations to control the management of waste. The EA’s powers to search and seize evidence and access communications data have been strengthened as a result. Wide ranging recommendations are being implemented through regulatory reform. In 2023, the EA requested and was provided with enhanced powers to sanction offenders using Variable Monetary Penalties.

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 control with no regard to their impact on the environment and local people.