What Do You Think of It So Far? Rubbish!

Criminal gangs, dumping illegal waste costs the UK almost £925m per year. In spite of this, the relatively paltry fines are currently treated by the dumpers as a 'business expense' (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/oct/19/uk-governments-approach-to-waste-close-to-decriminalisation-fly-tipping). Disposing of waste legally requires paying fees. People illegally dumping waste avoid these disposal charges. They have, however, every chance of avoiding prosecution as there are relatively few people 'policing' illegal dumping. If fly-tippers are caught, they are also likely to receive a modest fine, rather than a prison sentence (these are exceedingly rare). The government's current approach to fly-tipping and waste crime has been judged by experts to be 'close to decriminalisation'. It seems odd to largely allow this activity, especially at the time of a 'cost of living crisis'!