Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Fire Service’s powers to prevent fires at illegal waste sites.

No assessment has been undertaken by this Department. Responsibility for tackling illegal waste sites and preventing waste-related fires, sits with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with enforcement undertaken by the Environment Agency and local authorities under the waste regulatory regime.