The select committee report,Tenth Report of the Role of DEFRA,in part, comes in response to Lord Haskins, who was asked by the prime minister to carry out a review of the department a year on from its creation.
Since its creation, DEFRA has been criticised some people in the recycling and waste management sector for its focus on rural policies at the expense of waste management issues. Trade body, the Environmental Services Association – noted in the EFRA report – has claimed the policy units of DEFRA dealing with waste have been under-resourced and that within this area, staff turnover has been high, resulting in a lack of continuity and delays in key legislation such as Landfill Regulations.
Outside bodies
The report explained DEFRA's relationships with a large number of outside bodies with a range of business interests, and within them lists waste disposal companies and local authorities. The committee commented that: “That several witnesses commented that the undoubted willingness of DEFRA to interact with interested parties was compromised by a lack of resources in the Department, and particularly a shortage of staff and a high turnover, with waste management trade association.
Quoted within the report, the ESA said: “both the Waste Policy and Waste Strategy units remain under-resourced to deliver the diverse and complex work programme surrounding the management of waste and secondary resources.”
The report continued to highlight comments from the Local Government Association, which said: “The LGA reported difficulties faced by local authorities seeking to include targets on recycling waste within their local public service agreements which it attributed to a “lack of recourses being applied to this priority.”
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