Hertfordshire farmer speaks in House of Lords to support new bill aiming to tackle country’s £2bn fly-tipping problem

Proposals to make company directors accountable for large scale fly-tips, reported to be costing the UK economy £2bn a year, have been welcomed by a Hertfordshire farmer.

Will Dickinson, who farms near St Albans, is a leading figure in the NFU’s campaigning on fly-tipping.

He spoke in support of the Corporate Waste Crime Responsibility Bill during a meeting in the House of Lords this week.

It comes after a new spate of fly-tipping in the St Albans area.

The Private Member’s Bill has been brought forward by Baroness Sheehan and intends to address the issue of business waste ending up in the hands of criminal gangs and fly-tipped.

This is seen as one of the root causes of fly-tipping and Baroness Sheehan told the meeting the bill intends “to turn the tap off at the source” of industrial scale waste crime.

The bill seeks to require large companies to appoint a named director accountable so businesses could face fines when their rubbish is fly-tipped and due diligence has not been followed.  

A report supporting the bill states:

·                Fly-tipping costs the UK economy £2bn a year.

·                 An estimated 38 million tonnes of waste is handled illegally in England every year.

·                The Environment Agency estimates up to 20% of waste may pass through illegal activity somewhere in the waste chain.

·                Around 700 illegal waste sites are currently known to exist across England.

·                 Only around 27% of waste crime is believed to be reported, meaning the true scale is likely far larger.

Monday’s meeting was held to build evidence in support of the bill.

Mr Dickinson said: “Anything to help tackle this awful crime is welcomed and hopefully this will make a positive impact.

“Fly-tipping is out of control in this country. It is important to keep this issue in the spotlight, with discussions at this level, but much more will be needed.”

Mr Dickinson, who is a regular victim of fly-tipping, told the meeting about Essex farmer Alex Sell who is facing a bill of around £350,000 to clear 2,000 tonnes of waste fly-tipped on his land at North Stifford, near Grays.  

Mr Dickinson reported how a public fundraiser was needed to save his 80-year-old neighbour from financial ruin, after he was legally obliged to pay more than £50,000 to clear 200 tonnes of rubbish fly-tipped on his farm.

He added that there had been a spate of around 15 lorry loads of rubbish fly-tipped in the St Albans area in the last 10 days.

Mr Dickinson said: “Organised criminal gangs are wreaking havoc in the countryside, costing the farming industry tens of millions of pounds in clear-up costs, threatening our livelihoods, jeopardising national food security and damaging the environment.

“These criminals are causing so much damage and are making a fortune doing it, with little risk of being caught. In the rare cases when people are convicted of fly-tipping they get fines which amount to less than the costs of hiring a skip.”

A new NFU survey has found that nearly half of farmers questioned believe fly-tipping has worsened.

Mr Dickinson backs the NFU’s calls for a change in the law, so fly-tipping victims are not responsible for clear-up costs.

The NFU is also calling for the authorities to work better together to secure more arrests and convictions and for stronger penalties to be imposed on those who are convicted.  

Monday’s meeting was attended by representatives from the NFU, Defra, the Environment Agency and the Environmental Services Association.

Westmorland and Lonsdale MP and Liberal Democrat Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesperson Tim Farron, who has sponsored the bill, also attended.

The bill is due to go for a second reading in the House of Commons on November 20.