Greater Manchester will be one of the first areas to adopt new region-led approaches to waste crime, as Andy Burnham, MP for Makerfield, announced a government crackdown on criminal gangs running illegal waste sites.
Police and the National Crime Agency will now play a bigger role in tackling illegal waste, alongside better use of drones, a steep rise in fines, and more Environment Agency officers on the front line. Mayors will also lead efforts in their own areas under the new plans, with reforms to facilitate better intelligence and capability sharing between national and regional agencies and councils.
Government Funding and Clean-Up of Illegal Sites
Alongside the enforcement package, the government is funding the clean-up of three more of the country's most serious illegal waste sites. The government says the sites contain around 22,000 tonnes of illegally dumped waste and are harming an estimated 2,900 families.
Greater Manchester is set to be one of the first areas to adopt the new region-led approach, along with West Yorkshire. The news comes after four men were arrested as part of an investigation into a huge illegal waste dump in Wigan. Earlier this month, the government announced it will directly fund the clean-up of the Bolton Road House site, whose entrance has been blocked with concrete blocks by the local authority to prevent more waste being dumped illegally.
Burnham: 'The Days of Making Easy Money Out of Waste Are Over'
Mr Burnham said: “These toxic dumps have blighted communities for too long. I said we would clean them up – and that’s exactly what we’re announcing today.
“The days of making easy money out of waste are over. We’re giving authorities the powers to hunt down the people responsible. We will seize their assets and shut their operations down.
“These mountains of rubbish have been a clear sign to communities that politics hasn’t been working for them or their area. This government is going to tackle the issues that have been ignored by Westminster for too long and bring back hope.”
New Powers and Higher Fines for Waste Crime
The intelligence-led operation aims to target priority operators, vehicles, routes and sites, concentrating resources on the highest-risk threats. The new scheme, the government says, has been accounted for from existing government budgets. It builds on the Waste Crime Action Plan, which aims to clear existing sites and prevent the set up of new ones.
The Environment Agency is now being given stronger powers to tackle waste crime, with increased capacity to hunt down and confiscate cash, cars, houses and other assets bought with the proceeds of waste crime. New powers in the Crime and Policing Act 2026 will also be used to speed up enforcement of confiscation orders. Those who dump waste illegally or fail to treat their actions correctly now face up to £5,000 in fines, up from the current maximum of £300.
Environment Secretary Dame Angela Eagle said: “This isn't just about people dumping rubbish. Large-scale waste sites are fuelled by serious, organised crime, and we need to use the full force of the law to tackle it and root it out at source.
“Communities have been subjected to horrendous conditions and denied the pride they deserve in the places they call home. This ends now.
“We are cleaning up sites, but we are also stopping the cycle, driving faster prevention and disruption, better intelligence, and stronger coordination across the system.”
The government says it continues to drive to clean up illegal dumps, with three more sites identified for clearance, subject to feasibility assessments: Power Station Road, Isle of Sheppey, Kent; Aymer Close, Runnymede, Surrey; and Midland Road, Bradford, West Yorkshire.
