Question reference: S5W-33340
- Asked by: Joan McAlpine, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 17 November 2020
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Current status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 December 2020
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on extending householder responsibility to ensure that waste is disposed of legally.
Answer
Householders already have a legal duty of care to only pass their waste onto registered waste carriers. The duty of care requires occupiers of domestic property to take all reasonable measures available to them in the circumstances to ensure that they only transfer household waste produced on that property to an authorised person. This reduces the chance of waste ending up in the hands of those who would illegally fly-tip it.
This duty of care has been highlighted in recent communications campaigns from Scottish Government, SEPA and Zero Waste Scotland.
The National Litter Strategy, which includes measures on flytipping, is coming to the end of its five year lifespan and we are considering how best to take forward a review of policy in this area.