While upcoming Government reforms to the regulation of waste carrier registration and the introduction of digital waste tracking both have the potential to help combat the dumping of UK waste in foreign countries, the current level of compliance and enforcement activity by the Environment Agency does not appear to be up to the challenge posed by organised criminal gangs increasingly seeking to circumvent the current export regime. We recommend that the Environment Agency’s compliance and enfo...

While upcoming Government reforms to the regulation of waste carrier registration and the introduction of digital waste tracking both have the potential to help combat the dumping of UK waste in foreign countries, the current level of compliance and enforcement activity by the Environment Agency does not appear to be up to the challenge posed by organised criminal gangs increasingly seeking to circumvent the current export regime. We recommend that the Environment Agency’s compliance and enforcement capacity is strengthened to enable more thorough checks of plastic waste exports. To fund this the Government should allow the Environment Agency Type: recommendation | Number: 24 | Paragraph: 114 | Response status: not_addressed Government response: Since 2014 the government has committed an additional £60 million through the EA for tackling waste crime, approximately £10 million per year. This money is now permanently baselined in the EA’s budget and has been invested into three key are