Three of the worst illegal rubbish dumps in England are set to be cleaned up at the taxpayers’ expense as part of a national waste crime action plan launched by the government.

Huge tips in Wigan, Sheffield and Lancashire - together containing 48,000 tonnes of waste - have been earmarked for clearance by the Environment Agency. A 20,000-tonne site in Kidlington, Oxfordshire, is already being cleared at a cost of more than £9m.

Normally, the cost of clearing illegal sites on private land is met by the landowner.