Drone footage last week revealed hundreds of tonnes of “revolting” illegal waste, fly-tipped in a field next to the River Cherwell near Kidlington in Oxfordshire.
At PMQs, the Lib Dem leader called on Sir Keir Starmer to “instruct the Environment Agency to clean it up now.”
You can hear the question and answer here.
The Environment Agency told Sky News it has obtained a court order to close the site to all public access for at least six months.
A spokesperson said: “Specialist officers are investigating waste dumped near the A34 at Kidlington. Their role will be to find who left the waste there and take appropriate action.”
People living and working along Broadoaks in Tolworth, say they would like Sir Ed to have addressed their concerns just as publicly.
The route, which runs parrallel to busy Tolworth Broadway, has been, according to traders, blighted by illegal waste dumping for more than 20 years (pictured above this morning). Kingston Council has previously said it is unable to carry out enforcement because the land is private.
Residents and traders have taken it upon themselves to have regular clean ups, and say they recognise they are each responsible for maintaining their part of the road, but say the illegal dumping returns within “a matter of hours” and they are powerless to stop it.
They also say part of the area has recently become a “magnet for antisocial behaviour with people smoking Marijuana and dropping litter daily.”
Traders claim the whole route, which sits behind shops, offices and restaurants, is an environmental health hazard and that they have been asking for helpful solutions to the problem for the last decade. They say one option considered was to make the road private, but they claim they were told by council officers that this would have cost implications and also not be viable because residents in flats above the shops still need to have their rubbish collected.
Sir Ed Davey has been the MP for Kingston and Surbiton since 1997, with a break between 2015 and 2017.
The Lib Dems first took control of Kingston Council in 1994 to 1998. It was then under NOC until 2002 when they took it back again until 2014. The Conservatives held control between 2014 and 2018 and it has been Lib Dem since 2018.
Radio Jackie has contacted both Sir Ed Davey and Kingston Council for comment.
Sir Ed Davey says; “The fly-tipping at Broad Oaks is completely unacceptable. Although I have received reassurances that the situation has improved since I initially became aware of it, any incident of fly-tipping threatens the health of our community.
Fly-tipping is a blight and causes misery for residents.
“I have supported the Councillors in their effort to try and find a permanent solution to the problem and I will do whatever they feel is appropriate to help.”
Please also find the below quote from Councillor Thay Thayalan:
“As a ward councillor since 2014, I have worked closely with the Broad Oaks community, the police and the council to tackle persistent fly-tipping and anti-social behaviour. Through annual clean-ups, awareness campaigns, enforcement action, community monitoring and the creation of the Broad Oaks Action Group, we have made significant progress in reducing large-scale fly-tipping and improving safety in the area. While Broad Oaks is a private, unadopted road and remains difficult to manage, I remain fully committed to supporting residents and pursuing lasting solutions.”
