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

To ask His Majesty's Government how many 'orphan' waste sites deal with hazardous waste; and what recent discussions they have had with businesses about minimising taxation barriers for such sites.

The Environment Agency has no records of orphaned waste sites containing hazardous waste. Local Authorities will hold records of orphan sites on their contaminated land registers.

A Call for Evidence was held from 21 July to 18 August 2022 on a Proposed Landfill Tax Grant Scheme. The Grant Scheme, announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer at the last Spring Budget, will help Local Authorities cover the cost of landfill tax in land remediation projects. The Government Response to the Call for Evidence was published on 15 March 2023 and the Grant Scheme is currently under development.