Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Conclusion 18
Eighteenth Report - Government actions to combat waste crime
Published 19 Oct 2022
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Government actions to combat waste crime All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The Agency told us how under the current regime almost anybody can register with it as a waste carrier, broker or dealer and present themselves as a legitimate waste operator. Several organisations submitted evidence to our enquiry that demonstrated how this lax approach enables waste crime. The National Farmers Union told us how its members are approached by companies posing as legitimate waste operators, offering farmers money in return for temporary storage of waste, only for the companies to then disappear.62 SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK told us how rogue companies charge low rates for waste collection, undercutting legitimate operators, but then fold leaving the waste for others to clean up. It called for more robust competency requirements for organisations seeking environmental permits.63 The Environmental Services Association also called for reforms to the waste carriers, brokers and dealers regulations to make it more difficult for criminals to enter the waste sector.64 We heard from Defra and the Agency that they are consulting on the regulations, which will be reformed to require a much higher level of technical competence and evidence of not being a rogue dealer, including background and criminal checks, in order to be able to register as a waste operator.65
From: Public Accounts Committee, Eighteenth Report - Government actions to combat waste crime (HC 33), 19 October 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 14 December 2022 (deadline 19 December 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government states that it agrees with the Committee's recommendations on waste crime, listing most as "implemented" and giving target dates for others.
- On the Resources and Waste Strategy, the government agrees with the recommendation, while noting that "some delivery has been slower than originally planned"; it lists planned reforms including digital waste tracking and reform of the waste carriers, brokers and dealers' regime, both "planned for 2024".
- On landfill tax, the government agrees and says the Landfill Tax Review would consider the structure of the tax and "the impacts of any proposed changes to this on waste crime"; HMRC is to report on its approach to investigations, with a target date of December 2022.
- On sanctions, the government agrees and notes that the Sentencing Council is responsible for sentencing guidance and the courts make "independent decisions"; the department "intends to conduct new research" into enforcement of small scale fly-tipping, "anticipated to commence in early 2023".
- On the digital waste tracking contract, the government agrees; it is "anticipated that the contract will be let by the end of 2022" and the department "will write to inform the Committee" when this happens.