Those that pollute the environment will face unlimited penalties under new legislation announced by the government today (Wednesday, July 21).
At present, the Environment Agency and Natural England can give out a maximum variable monetary penalty of £250,000.
This has been increased following response to a government consultation on increasing the cap on variable monetary penalties and broadening their use.
Penalties for polluters
Variable monetary penalties are an alternative to criminal prosecutions which are reserved for the most serious offences; the most serious pollution incidents will continue to be dealt with through the courts.
There are guidelines in place that will ensure the level of penalty imposed by the agencies is proportionate to the degree of environmental harm and culpability.
These include safeguards to ensure the operator’s ability to pay, the size of the operator, and the degree of responsibility and harm, amongst others.
New powers will also enable these higher penalties to be levied as a civil sanction for offences under the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016, the regime under which the majority of Environment Agency investigations take place.
This will ensure regulators have the right tools to drive compliance across a range of sectors, strengthening enforcement and holding all who hold environmental permits to greater account.
“We regularly prosecute companies and individuals through criminal proceedings, but these new powers will allow us to deliver penalties that are quicker and easier to enforce, even though the most serious cases will continue to go to court,” Environment Agency chair Alan Lovell said.
“That should be an important deterrent – boosting compliance across a range of sectors, driving down pollution and safeguarding the ecology and prosperity of our natural world.”
Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey said this builds on government action to “stand up for our environment”.
“Polluters must always pay,” she said.
The legislation will be approved by both Houses of Parliament before coming into force.
