A councillor, whose ward has a "big problem" with fly-tipping, has welcomed new powers allowing local authorities to crush offending vehicles.
Labour Cllr Abdul Atcha of Rumworth was reacting to the news from Whitehall which says councils are expected to “get much more aggressive” against fly-tippers.
Criminals caught transporting and dealing with waste illegally could also face five years behind bars under potential new legislation.
No extra money is to be made available for the planned crackdown on dumped rubbish, with cash-strapped local authorities to pay for it from existing budgets.
READ MORE: Flytipping at Hall i' th' Wood museum branded as 'disrespectful' by leaders
Bolton's fly-tipping hotspot named ‘where children can't play outside'
Fly tipping fines for 'blight on our borough' soar ten fold
Drones and mobile CCTV cameras are set to be deployed to identify cars and vans belonging to fly-tippers across the country so they can be destroyed.
In addition, ministers have launched a rapid review to slash red tape blocking councils from seizing and crushing vehicles.
Councils currently have to bear the significant cost of seizing and storing vehicles but under new plans fly-tippers will cover this cost, saving councils and taxpayers money.
Criminals caught transporting and dealing with waste illegally will now face up to five years in prison under new legislation.
Read more: "We love Bolton and we love where we live" - Litter-pickers collect fly-tipping waste
Fly-tippers could be forced to stump up for the high cost of their vehicles being taken and stored under the plans being considered by ministers.
Cllr Atcha said: "It's good to have extra power, we have passed a budget to enhance the removal of illegal waste in areas with a great demand for it, our budget would take that [the cost of the new powers] into account.
"Regarding the latest budget, we also ensured that unadopted streets, where a lot of fly tipping takes place, get enough resources to tackle the issue, that is blighting our streets."
Executive cabinet member for climate change and the environment, Cllr Richard Silvester, said: "The government announcement is thoroughly welcome news and it shows that the Secretary of State for the Environment has listened to Labour Council’s through Adam’s lobbying.
"Labour inherited a broken system with regards to fly tipping from the Conservatives and with the new powers that Council’s are obtaining, they will help to clean up our streets and countryside.
"Councils currently have to bear significant costs when seizing and storing vehicles but this will change and fly-tippers will cover the cost, saving Councils and taxpayers money.
"Any criminals caught transporting and dealing with waste illegally will now face up to five years in prison under new legislation.
"In Bolton, this Labour administration has introduced higher fines for fly tippers and those who drop litter and we are determined to clean up the Borough, injecting extra resources in the recent budget to recruit more staff to clean our streets and remove fly tipping; started a new service collecting fly tipping from unadopted streets and invested in our superb volunteers who litter pick around the Borough through Bolton Green Umbrella.
"All this means that Labour both locally in Bolton running the Council and nationally in government are taking the issue of fly tipping and littering very seriously indeed, investing in services and creating new powers and laws. Labour is therefore calling time on fly-tipping."
Bolton Council leader, Nick Peel, said: "Welcome news from the Government that councils are to get new powers to crack down on fly tippers and bogus waste removal operators, including crushing their vehicles and 5 years in prison!"
He added: “Working people in Bolton have had enough of the criminal dumpers who pollute our neighbourhoods with rubbish – and these new powers will help reinforce our zero-tolerance approach.
“Our message to waste criminals is clear – we will not accept fly-tipping, we are actively looking to catch those who trash our communities, and when we find you, vehicles will be seized and crushed to protect our residents, and perpetrators will face up to five years in prison.
“Across the country and right here, Labour is taking action to deliver the change people voted for. It won’t happen overnight, but Labour’s Plan for Change is on the right track and after years of chaos and incompetence Britain is finally moving in the right direction.”
Environment secretary Steve Reed told reporters at a car-crushing plant in Wokingham, Berkshire: “Councils will get much more aggressive against fly-tippers and that includes using the latest technology, things like the new mobile CCTV cameras and drones to identify, track and then seize the vehicles that are being used for fly-tipping to a yard like this and crush them.
“That’s both as a punishment for those people who are dumping the rubbish but also as a deterrent for those who are thinking about doing it.”
He added: “We’re also looking to change the law so that those rogue operators who take rubbish from someone’s home and then dump it on a nearby road – they were getting away almost scot-free under the previous Government – they will now be looking at potentially five-year prison sentences.”
Share