Reassurances that waste crime prevention have not been forgotten under the general din of austerity – plus a boost to the AD industry in the form of more funding for the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) – help sweeten the pill.
But, as many spokespeople for the waste industry have reminded us today, the devil will indeed be in the detail.
Allocating £20 million from the Landfill Communities Fund to fight waste crime over the next five years, while commended, is unlikely to make up for the further 15% cuts now faced by Defra. This pressure could well impact the department’s ability to commit resources to tackling unscrupulous operators as ‘streamlining’ sets in.
Elsewhere, a less than palatable £4.1 billion cut to local government funding over the next five years will no doubt send shockwaves through councils across the country, which are already struggling to maintain the level of collections residents have seen in the past.
So while there is plenty to chew over in today’s review, waste businesses and council officers should still be braced for some tough decisions ahead.
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