Fly-tipping: Taxpayers foot multimillion-pound cleanup bill after rise in illegal dumping

The number of fly-tipping incidents rose slightly in 2014-15 to 529,462

Fly-tipping is on the rise across England, with taxpayers footing a multimillion-pound bill to clear up illegally dumped waste, figures show.

Incidents of rubbish being dumped illegally and the costs of dealing with it have risen for the second year running, responses from more than 200 local authorities to a Freedom of Information request from the Press Association suggest.

The number of fly-tipping incidents rose slightly in 2014-15 to 529,462 cases across 201 councils, up from 527,777 the previous year. But both years were significantly higher than in 2012-13.

The figures suggest the upward trend in fly-tipping across England could be continuing after years of decline.

Across the 144 councils that gave financial data, the clean-up cost totalled more than £16.2m in 2014-15, up from just under £16m the previous year and £13.6m in 2012-13.

Peter Box, the Local Government Association’s environment spokesman, said local authorities were spending tens of millions of pounds a year on fly-tipping clean-ups, which could be better spent on welfare services.

Press Association