Glastonbury fly-tip clean-up sparks MP’s waste crime call

A major fly-tip cleared by volunteers at Glastonbury's Red Brick Building has been raised in Parliament during a debate on waste crime.

Sarah Dyke, Liberal Democrat MP for Glastonbury and Somerton, cited the case after volunteers raised £1,500 and spent a day clearing dumped waste when no public body took responsibility for the clean-up.

Ms Dyke, the Liberal Democrat rural affairs spokesperson, welcomed new measures to strengthen regulation of waste carriers. But she said tougher enforcement and greater resources were still needed to tackle illegal dumping and organised waste crime.

She told Parliament: "The new permitting regime is a welcome step, but it will not stop organised criminal gangs who are already operating outside the law.

"Communities should never have to clean up after criminals because enforcement has failed. We need stronger action to ensure those responsible for waste crime are caught and punished, not allowed to profit while residents and landowners are left to deal with the consequences."

Ms Dyke said the Red Brick Building clean-up showed the strength of Glastonbury's community, but also exposed failures in the current system. She argued that residents, volunteers and landowners should not be left picking up the bill when waste is dumped illegally.

She also highlighted wider figures, saying Somerset recorded around 3,000 fly-tipping incidents last year. Across England, she said there were 1.26 million reported incidents but just 1,377 prosecutions.

Ms Dyke called on the Government to increase fixed penalties for fly-tipping and give a national agency clear responsibility for investigating organised waste crime. She also urged ministers to introduce rewards for information leading to successful prosecutions and create a single national route for reporting waste crime.