Philip Dunne welcomes Government action to reduce metal theft

Philip Dunne welcomed Government action to reduce metal theft following today’s announcement that paying cash for scrap metal will be outlawed.

Fines would be 'significantly increased' to tackle the growing problem of metal theft, and will be brought in as amendments to the Legal Aid Bill. The metal recycling industry is worth £5.6bn and employs 8,000 people in the UK, but the trade in stolen metal costs the economy an estimated £700 million a year and causes the death of two offenders a month in the UK.

The proposed legislation is aimed at current 'low-risk transactions' for people who steal metal, and builds on last month’s launch of the Waste and Metal Theft Taskforce under the Metropolitan Police Service.

Philip Dunne said: “I have been contacted by constituents concerned about increasing metal theft, so I am glad the Government has responded positively to tackle this problem. Metal theft has been causing increasing inconvenience to those affected. The construction industry is particularly vulnerable, but metal theft is also responsible for much of the desecration of war memorials and heritage sites, and for the disruption of rail services when cables are removed. There has been a particular problem with theft of lead from Church roofs locally.”

Theresa May MP, Home Secretary, said today: "Legislation is the only sustainable, long-term solution to the growing menace of metal theft. There is an urgent need to make stealing metal less attractive to criminals, and tackling the stolen metal market will act as a significant deterrent.”

The Home Office explained that cash transactions for scrap metal are often completed without any proof of personal identification or proof that the individual legitimately owns the metal being sold. This leads to anonymous, low-risk transactions for those individuals who steal metal. In addition, the widespread use of cash and poor record keeping by the metal recycling industry can support tax evasion activity."