Cheshire East has increased maximum fly-tipping penalties to £5,000 and is now considering surveillance to crackdown on offenders after issuing just 18 fine notices for 3,800 offences in a year.

Congleton town councillor Robert Douglas praised the council for increasing the fines – which now range from £500 to £5,000 depending on the offence.

But he told this week's meeting of the full council at Tatton Park: "The new higher penalties will only be effective if Cheshire East aggressively pursues those who commit the crime of fly-tipping."

Cllr Douglas said fly-tipping levels are 35 per cent higher now than they were in the three years prior to April 2020.

He said Milton Keynes Council has introduced an action plan which helped reduce fly-tipping levels by almost 27 per cent.

"When will Cheshire East adopt a similar action plan to that of Milton Keynes?" he asked.

"The scourge of fly-tipping will only be eradicated from our towns and from our countryside, and thereby save us £200,000 every year, if Cheshire East aggressively pursues those who commit the crime of fly-tipping."

Cllr David Jeffery (Wilmslow, Ind), the portfolio holder for environment, sustainability and waste management, said Milton Keynes is predominantly a single urban area, whereas Cheshire East covers a very large geographic area comprising towns, villages, and extensive rural countryside.

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He said approximately 70 per cent of all incidents reported in the borough are in Crewe, which is why the council has focused resources on the Cleaner Crewe programme.

"Whilst I accept that fly-tipping may have increased overall, it is worth noting that in Crewe… where we have adopted a targeted hotspot-based approach similar in principle to that advocated by Milton Keynes, reported fly-tipping incidents have reduced from 3,242 in 2023/24 to 2,680 in 2025/26."

He added this was a reduction of more than 17 per cent in three years.

"We're now considering what the next phase should look like," said Cllr Jefferay.

"It will include expanding the Cleaner Crewe project because that gives us the biggest bang for the buck.

"But we are also looking at what additional measures are appropriate for rural hotspot locations, which is our second highest problem area.

"That potentially includes the use of covert and overt surveillance, where justified and proportionate, whilst ensuring that any such measures comply with the relevant legal and regulatory requirements."