Asked by: Julia Lopez (Conservative - Hornchurch and Upminster)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the maximum fine available to courts and local authorities for fly-tipping from the current levels.
Answered by Baroness Coffey
The Sentencing Guideline for environmental offences was reviewed and strengthened in 2014. The maximum penalty on indictment for fly-tipping is imprisonment of up to five years or a potentially unlimited fine. The value of total fines handed down increased in 2016/17 and custodial sentences for fly-tipping increased by 56%. The Government will continue to provide information to the Sentencing Council as they monitor the impact of their guidance
The Government is committed to tackling fly-tipping at all levels. We have recently given local authorities the power to issue fixed penalty notices up to £400 for small scale fly-tipping and enhanced the local authorities and Environment Agency’s ability to search and seize vehicles of suspected fly-tippers.