Regulator for England lacks powers to deal with what the public accounts committee calls an ‘out-of-control plague’

The Environment Agency is too weak to tackle an “out-of-control plague” of waste dumping, a powerful group of MPs has said.

The public accounts committee (PAC) said the EA had gaps in its powers and intelligence gathering which meant it was not set up to deal effectively with the rise in waste dumping.

“The widespread and increasing issue of illegal waste sites surpasses the EA’s powers,” the committee wrote in a report published on Wednesday.