MP Nick Fletcher calls for fines of £10,000 for fly-tipping

MP NICK Fletcher called for a parliamentary debate on the “pre-meditated” crime of fly-tipping, calling for minimum £10,000 fines or prison sentences for those caught dumping.

The Tory MP for Don Valley, whose patch includes Conisbrough, said he wanted to see five-figure fines as a starting point.

Speaking in the House of Commons last Thursday, Mr Fletcher (right) said: “Many crimes are carried out in the heat of the moment or in a single lack of judgment.

“Fly-tipping is not one of them.

“It is a premeditated crime. No-one fly-tips accidentally.

“Can we have a debate on fly-tipping, as I believe that minimum fines of £10,000 or immediate custodial sentences are the only way to bring this abhorrent practice to an end?”

Leader of the House Penny Mordaunt pointed out that since 2016 councils have had the power to issue fixed penalties which gives them the means to take swift action. She added: We have introduced fixed penalties for householders who give their waste to people who then go on to fly-tip”.

She said she would write to the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs on Mr Fletcher’s behalf to raise the issue and encourage staff to get in touch.

The vast majority of Advertiser readers backed Mr Fletcher’s proposal, with 83.5 per cent responding to social media poll supporting £10,000 minimum fines and just 16.5 per cent saying it was was pointless as the tippers would not pay up.