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

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the fly-tipping statistics for England 2014–15<i>,</i> and what action they will take in response to them.

The 2014/15 fly-tipping statistics showed that there were 900,000 reported fly-tipping incidents in England.

Tackling fly-tipping is a priority for the Government. As set out in our manifesto we will be giving councils the power to tackle small scale fly-tipping through penalty notices as an alternative to prosecutions in spring 2016.

These steps will build on other action we have taken, including working with the Sentencing Council to strengthen its Guideline for sentencing for environmental offences, which came into force on 1 July last year; making it easier for vehicles suspected of being involved in waste crime to be stopped, searched and seized; and continuing to work in partnership with others through the Defra-chaired National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group, to promote and disseminate good practice in the prevention, reporting, investigation and clearance of fly-tipped waste.