FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Government Urged to Reform Landfill Tax to Reduce Waste Crime and Pollution, According to Localis Study
London, UK – A new report published today by independent think-tank Localis argues that the government should reform landfill tax in order to cut down on waste crime and crackdown on organised gangs whose illegal activities cost the country more than £1bn a year and pollute the environment.
Titled ‘Cleaning up our act – reforming landfill tax for place resilience and best local outcomes,’ the report highlights the massive gap between standard levels of landfill tax and lower levels for ‘inactive’ material, which has led to an escalation of waste crime, including illegal dumping and fly-tipping.
According to the report, the costs of waste crime have increased by 55 percent since 2015 in England alone, with organised criminals exploiting loopholes and receiving paltry fines as running costs to the detriment of honest waste brokers.
The report estimates that the tax gap for landfill tax is 22.7 percent or £200m, suggesting high levels of tax evasion and avoidance by criminal operators who either misclassify active waste, underreport waste volumes, or resort to illegal dumping.
To combat this issue, the report recommends that the government introduces an intermediate tax band to bridge the gap between standard and lower rates, reducing the incentive for misclassification of waste and promoting fairer taxation.
In addition, the report argues that the Environment Agency needs an expanded budget and associated targets for prosecuting waste criminals, while local government should be granted enhanced powers to enforce waste regulations, including increased fines and penalties for fly-tipping, with revenues to support local clean-up efforts and landfill site development.
Jonathan Werran, chief executive of Localis, stated that “waste crime is toxic in that it despoils our natural environment, imposes costs on already cash-strapped councils, and robs the Treasury of tax revenue. Any serious attempt at place-based reform must look to addressing the iniquities and imbalances of how we tax it and then move to rigorous enforcement and prosecution of organised gangs.”
John Rauch, Chief Executive Officer of Augean, a leading UK operator of sustainable waste management services, welcomed the report and stated that “landfill tax has been a very important tool to divert waste away from landfill and to promote re-use, recycling, and energy recovery.”
The report is available for download from the Localis website, and further information can be found on the organisation’s website. [insert link]
About Localis:
Localis is an independent think-tank dedicated to issues related to politics, public service reform, and localism. They carry out innovative research, hold events, and facilitate a network of members to stimulate and challenge the current orthodoxy of the governance of the UK.
About Augean:
Augean is a leading UK operator of sustainable, compliance-led waste management services. They specialize in handling hard-to-manage wastes.
Key Findings and Recommendations:
– Reform of the landfill tax should incorporate the waste hierarchy to ensure only the right waste materials end up in landfill.
– Government should introduce an intermediate tax band to bridge the gap between standard and lower rates.
– A portion of landfill tax revenues should be allocated towards research and development for waste recovery and recycling technologies, as well as for legacy chemical cleanup.
– The Environment Agency needs an expanded budget and associated targets for prosecuting waste criminals.
– Local authorities should be granted enhanced powers to enforce waste regulations, including increased fines and penalties for fly-tipping.
– The government must increase transparency and efficiency in tax collection to combat high levels of tax evasion and avoidance.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Jonathan Werran, chief executive, Localis
(Telephone) 0870 448 1530 / (Mobile) 07967 100328 / (Email) jonathan.werran@localis.org.uk
Note to Editors:
An advance copy of the report is available for download from the Localis website.
To learn more about Localis, please visit their website at www.localis.org.uk.
To learn more about Augean, please visit their website at www.augean.co.uk.
