Fly-tippers should be hit harder in the pocket when they dump rubbish in local lanes, Lichfield’s MP has said.
Michael Fabricant made his comments after national figures revealed the number of incidents had risen by 16% in the last year.
The Conservative MP said the problem had also been felt across Lichfield and Burntwood.
“Despite council tips now being open again, illegal fly tipping is a growing problem in the leafy lanes of Lichfield and the rest of the region.
“I have raised this issue with DEFRA as fly tipping is not only antisocial, it puts additional strain on the hard work of local farmers and presents a major health hazard.
“For large fly-tipping incidents, the cost of clearance to local authorities in England in the last financial year was £11.6million.
“I have taken up the matter of the size of fines with DEFRA. With most fines being under the cost of hiring a skip, these are no deterrent – they must be substantially increased.
“I suspect I would have the support of Lichfield District Council and the cabinet member, Cllr Richard Cox, in this.”
Michael Fabricant MP
Mr Fabricant said he also supported calls from the NFU for a more single portal to deal with fly-tipping reports rather than land managers having to report incidents to multiple authorities.
Jeremy Lowe, from NFU Staffordshire, said:
“Everyone hugely values the benefits the countryside brings, and none of us want it blighted by huge amounts of rubbish being strewn across fields and on the sides of rural roads.
“Dumped waste is often very costly and time consuming to remove, dangerous to human health and harmful to wildlife and livestock.
“In some cases, fly-tipped rubbish pollutes watercourses and contaminates land.
“The NFU would like to see our politicians, the Environment Agency, police, local authorities, and farmers working together to tackle the problem, with a more consistent approach across the whole country.
“Currently 95% of fines given to offenders caught fly-tipping are lower than the cost of hiring a skip.
“This is a real nonsense and people dumping waste illegally must see the fines as a punishment, so they act as a proper deterrent to anyone tempted to fly-tip rubbish.
“We also need to understand the links to organised crime and commit to levelling up policing for both urban and rural areas to create a safer, cleaner and greener rural Britain.”
Jeremy Lowe, NFU
