Home Office “completely disengaged” with metal theft problem, BMRA says
The British Metals Recycling Association (BMRA) has urged the Home Office and local authorities to take the issue of metal theft more seriously, in light of a major new report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Metal, Stone and Heritage Crime.
The APPG report finds that the UK spends half a billion pounds a year tackling metal theft, with incidents having risen since 2019, resulting in costs of £4.3bn over the past decade. According to the document, produced after a year-long inquiry, metal theft involves up to 60 organised crime groups.
Calling for urgent action, James Kelly, the CEO of the BMRA, said: “The data shared in the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Metal, Stone and Heritage Crime makes for sobering reading.
“It clearly shows the scourge of metal theft is an ongoing problem. Operators willing to look the other way and buy stolen metal are being emboldened by the lack of enforcement of the Scrap Metal Dealers Act, thereby offering a disposal route for thieves.”
Andrew Selous, MP, the Chair of the APPG and the Second Church Estates Commissioner, commented: “The numerous applications of metals make them valuable, yet their value makes them attractive to steal.
“[Metal theft] is pervasive through society. Yet, when a metal theft is reported, it is often classified as a ‘non dwelling burglary’ which does not represent the true nature of the crime… This has led to a knowledge gap of the true scale of metal theft affecting our nation.”
The impact of metal theft
The study found that among the most stolen metal-containing items are catalytic converters from cars, with thefts having risen from 10,049 in 2013 to 27,195 last year - an increase of 170 per cent. Lead from church or historic building roofs and copper from cables are also targeted.
In 2022 alone, one organisation suffered 334 incidents of cable theft - totalling losses of £5.3m.
Commuters reportedly suffered 72,000 minutes - or 50 days - of delay in 2022 because railway signalling or overhead cables, containing high-value copper, had been stolen.
However, there were just 229 prosecutions between 2018 and 2022 for scrap metal dealer offences.
Commenting on efforts to manage the problem, Mr Kelly added: “While groups such as the National Infrastructure Crime Reduction Partnership are doing great work to tackle metal theft, the Home Office and local authorities are seemingly completely disengaged with the issue. We need the Home Office to recognise the seriousness of the issue and to act.”
The APPG recommends ten actions that could bring metal theft under control. These include setting up a Home Office-led Working Group to tackle the problem, as well as requiring police forces to collect and relay more detailed data on metal crime.
