MP calls for illegal waste action after site cleared

An MP is urging the government to take tougher action against illegal waste dumping after one of England's largest sites was cleared.

The Environment Agency (EA) announced on Thursday that a 150m-long trail of waste on land off the A34 near Kidlington, Oxfordshire, had been fully cleared.

More than 22,000 tonnes of rubbish was removed from the site during the five-month operation, costing an estimated £6m.

Calum Miller, MP for Bicester and Woodstock, said organised waste dumping was "going to need leadership from the top to tackle what is a national crisis". The environment secretary said the government was taking "decisive action" on the issue.

The site, which the EA said was larger than the pitch at Wembley Stadium, was shut down by officers in October 2025.

It declared it a critical incident in November, and a criminal investigation has seen four people arrested.

The agency funded the clear-up, although officials said they would pursue those responsible for the money as their investigation developed.

The operation saw an estimated 22,105 tonnes of commercial and household waste across an 8,000 sq m area fully dug up and removed.

It included tyres, shredded plastic, and household rubbish, with specialist teams shifting up to 30 lorry loads a day.

Officials said concrete blocks had now been placed at the entrance, preventing access, with the main gate now securely padlocked.

Last week the the prime minister set out new plans to shut down the criminal gangs running illegal waste sites, including giving the Environment Agency stronger powers to tackle waste crime.

While Calum Miller said he welcomed the changes, he was calling on the government to go further.

"It's also going to need more investment in order to stop the criminal gangs who are doing this and a better joining up across public agencies, ideally led by the National Crime Agency," he said.

The government said a greater use of drones, a bigger role for mayors and the police, more EA officers on the front line, and a dramatic rise in fines would deter and punish those who dump illegally.

Environment Secretary Dame Angela Eagle added: "Communities deserve to be free from the blight of illegal waste dumping, and this clean-up shows we will bring hope back to local residents.

"After years of waste crime being allowed to fester, we are taking decisive action through our crackdown, and cleaning up sites like Kidlington is just one part."

Miller said residents had told him they started reporting the Kidlington site in May of last year, with a site visit by the EA "in either late June or early July".

"But really frustratingly the Environment Agency wasn't able at that point to use legal powers to absolutely close down the site," he said.

"The authorities need to be given powers to move much more rapidly in order to close down these sites."

An Oxfordshire County Council spokesperson said the removal of the waste pile would come as a "great relief" to residents.

"We believe it was the right decision to fast-track this operation because of the size, scale, and location of the site – next to a river and the A34 – and the dangers and disruption a potential fire there would have created," they said.

The discovery of the waste last year sparked national outrage.

At the time, chief executive of charity Friends of the Thames, Lauara Reineke, said: "This is an environmental catastrophe unfolding in plain sight."

There had been concerns that pollution from the tip could spill into the nearby River Cherwell, prompting officials to install barriers to protect the waterway.

Water quality sampling was regularly taken at the site but found no evidence of a significant impact on the local environment, officials said.