Overview
- Peers report at least 38 million tonnes of waste are illegally managed each year by organised crime groups linked to drugs, firearms, money laundering and modern slavery.
- The inquiry estimates a £1 billion annual cost to the UK economy, including up to £150 million in evaded landfill tax.
- Recommendations include a joint waste‑crime unit, a Treasury review of funding rules that limit resource diversion, and interim targets with comprehensive metrics from Defra.
- Hoad's Wood in Kent is cited as a failure case, with public reports starting in 2020 and a restriction order only obtained in January 2024 after more than 30,000 tonnes had been dumped.
- The Environment Agency counters that it shut 462 illegal sites last year and blocked nearly 34,000 tonnes from illegal export, as chief executive Philip Duffy told MPs claims of incompetence are "very unfair" and he pledged written details on inspection timelines.