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

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to encourage (1) National Highways, (2) principal local authorities, (3) the Environment Agency, and (4) private landowners, to put in place measures to reduce littering and fly tipping on (a) roadsides, (b) slip roads, and (c) embankments adjacent to trunk roads, in England.

The Department for Transport (DfT) works closely with National Highways to ensure the Strategic Road Network is predominantly free from litter, without compromising safety. National Highways aims to influence littering behaviour, and improve operations, responsiveness to road user feedback and partnership-working with local authorities. National Highways performance is also reported to DfT and the Office of Rail and Road through a litter performance indicator.

Defra is supporting councils to tackle litter and fly-tipping such as by bolstering their enforcement powers (including where litter is thrown from a vehicle) and in recent years, providing grant funding for local interventions. These grants include nearly £1 million across 44 councils in 2021 to help them purchase litter bins and over £400,000 across 11 councils in 2022 to reduce fly-tipping using equipment such as CCTV. We have also committed to awarding a further £800,000 in grants in 2023 to help more councils tackle fly-tipping.

In 2022, Defra published a report on litter on the Strategic Road Network which highlighted good practice. Next steps on tackling the issue were outlined in our most recent Litter Strategy Annual Report, including how to ensure better collaboration between National Highways and local authorities.

Defra continues to chair the National Fly-tipping Prevention Group, made up a wide range of interested bodies including the Environment Agency, organisations representing private landowners and local authorities, to promote and disseminate good practice with regards to preventing fly-tipping, including on private land.