The 2018 Resources and Waste Strategy acknowledged there were serious gaps in the national data on waste.21 When we asked how action to combat waste crime could be prioritised without good quality data, Defra told us “There is quite a lot more that we want to do” to improve data on waste crime.22 The Agency said “we think that only about 25% of all waste crime” is reported, and described the level of illegal waste exports as a “known unknown”.23 Defra and the Agency accept that the public can...

The 2018 Resources and Waste Strategy acknowledged there were serious gaps in the national data on waste.21 When we asked how action to combat waste crime could be prioritised without good quality data, Defra told us “There is quite a lot more that we want to do” to improve data on waste crime.22 The Agency said “we think that only about 25% of all waste crime” is reported, and described the level of illegal waste exports as a “known unknown”.23 Defra and the Agency accept that the public cannot rely on information about who are legitimate waste operators as opposed to rogue dealers or “fly-by-night companies”, due to weaknesses in the regist Type: conclusion | Number: 9 | Response status: not_addressed Government response: 2. PAC conclusion: Official data do not capture the true scale and impact of waste crime, and government initiatives do not amount to a convincing overall plan to address this. 2a. PAC recommendation: Defra [and the agency] needs to explore the full range of poten