THOUSANDS of incidents of fly-tipping in York have sparked a row amid fears the problem is growing and calls for action.

Liberal Democrat Westfield ward councillor Andrew Waller said the Labour administration on City of York Council needed to say what it was doing to tackle the problem following 3,788 incidents in 2025/6.

Cllr Jenny Kent, the council’s environment spokesperson, said they had been looking at dealing with fly-tipping including through bulky waste collections for low-income households or those without a car.

It comes as council figures for 2025/6, the latest full year with figures available, were up from 2,954 the year prior.

Liberal Democrat Westfield ward councillor Andrew Waller with waste fly-tipped in the car park of Morrisons, in Front Street, Acomb. Picture is from York Liberal Democrats,

placeholder image — Liberal Democrat Westfield ward councillor Andrew Waller with waste fly-tipped in the car park of Morrisons, in Front Street, Acomb. Picture is from York Liberal Democrats,

Cllr Waller said he raised the issue with Labour’s Cllr Kent at a council meeting which received an update on public realm management on Tuesday, November 3.

His party said they would introduce community skips and tidy-up vans in fly-tipping hotspots to make it easier for people to get rid of their unwanted items.

Cllr Waller said: “It is incredibly disappointing that Labour had nothing to say about the growing problem of fly-tipping in York.

“We asked some very straightforward questions at the meeting. What support is being provided to help residents dispose of their waste properly?

(From left to right) Ed Bland, operations manager for York Council's public realm team, York Council's Labour Environment Executive Member Cllr Jenny Kent, Neighbourhood Caretakers Andrew Wood and Salem Branch and Neighbourhood Caretaker Foreperson

“Why aren’t we making greater use of CCTV in known hotspots? And why aren’t we building on successful approaches like the one at Acomb Morrisons?

“These are real problems affecting neighbourhoods across York, and residents deserve answers about what the council is doing to tackle them.”

Cllr Kent said there was never an excuse for fly-tipping.

She added the council’s tidy-up vans worked hard to respond to incidents quickly, including in Westfield.

Cllr Kent said: “Sadly, fly-tipping is on the rise nationally, it blights our environment, harms wildlife and spoils our streets.

“We don’t think community skips are the answer, as they don’t address the needs of those without a car, usually cited as the main reason people cannot visit the tip, and often result in additional fly-tipped waste that the council has to pay to remove.

“We reviewed the types of items being dumped in our streets and much of it is black bags of household rubbish left on verges and in back alleys.

“There’s no excuse for this when everyone has a fortnightly waste collection, I urge people to report others who they know or see committing this criminal offence.”