Calls have been made to 'clamp down' on fly-tippers after data, obtained through the freedom of information act , suggests those illegally dumping rubbish in Scotland manage to avoid any penalty 99 per cent of the time.
The Scottish Liberal Democrats are calling on authorities up and down the country to "clamp down" on fly-tippers after damning data, obtained through the freedom of information act , suggests those illegally dumping rubbish in Scotland manage to avoid any penalty 99 per cent of the time.
New data shows there were 207,960 reports of rubbish being dumped between 2019/20 and 2021/22, but the Scottish Liberal Democrats said just 2,467 fines were handed out.
Glasgow City Council reported the highest number of incidents with 67,219 but issued just 209 fines.
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The party, which obtained the data from local authorities across Scotland using freedom of information powers, said that just 45 were referred to the Procurator Fiscal.
It means just 1.2% of reports resulted in a fixed penalty notice or have been referred, and now Willie Rennie, the party's communities spokesman, has called for more to be done to end Scotland's fly-tipping blight.
"We need to see local authorities using the powers at their disposal to clamp down on this disgusting behaviour and ensure that repeat offenders especially feel the full force of the law," he said.
"Littering might as well be legal under this SNP government.
"From remote beauty spots to busy cities, these figures show that fly-tipping is a blight on our beautiful country. Not only that but it can prove catastrophic for animals, plants and soil."
The City of Edinburgh Council recorded 35,038 in the three-year period, while Fife Council logged 11,711, according to the freedom of information data.
Some councils, such as Edinburgh's, did not hold data on the number of fines handed out and others did not hold data on how many convictions were secured, if any.
But, according to the party's data, only six of the local authorities in Scotland had passed cases to the Procurator Fiscal and only East Dunbartonshire had obtained a conviction.
Mr Rennie said: "The pandemic and the bin strikes disrupted refuse collections but there is also a fundamental unfairness in the present system, which sees farmers and other owners left with the responsibility for clearing up waste which has been dumped on their properties."
He said his party wanted to see increased support for farmers and those who end up bearing the brunt of cleaning up the rubbish.
"This should use the proceeds of a new restitution order which hits offenders' pockets hard," he said.
"This could see courts able to require a contribution from offenders to a new national fund available to help victims."
A Scottish Government spokesman said it was "determined to tackle the serious environmental and economic impacts that fly-tipping causes".
"We have already announced plans to more than double fines and are also looking at the possibility of extending the use of civil penalties to enforce offences," the spokesman said.
"We will also be publishing a new Litter & Flytipping Strategy in the new year, which will set how we will tackle these issues.
"We would encourage relevant public authorities to investigate fly-tipping on public and private land and to offer assistance to private landowners where they can."
The Crown Office has been approached for comment.
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