|
Cable theft on the railway causes increasing disruption to passengers, escalating costs to the rail industry and has seen ten people killed on the railway within the past year. In 2010/11 cable theft caused the delay or cancellation of over 35,000 national rail services and cost Network Rail over £16 million. This crime is part of a broader increase in metal theft from public spaces, which includes thefts from the railway, utilities companies and churches. Recent years have seen cable theft spread from hotspots in north east England across Britain, fuelled by increases in the price of copper on global markets. Ongoing demand for this metal means the appeal of cable theft to opportunist criminals is likely to continue. In this report we consider action that the rail industry, scrap metal industry and Government should take to tackle the domestic market for stolen copper cable.
The weak link in efforts to combat cable theft is the scrap metal industry. At present, stolen cable can be sold on and processed through the supply chain with relative ease, as original sellers of stolen metal are difficult to identify. Although there are requirements under the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 1964 for dealers to maintain records of sellers, these are often inaccurate or incomplete. A more stringent statutory requirement for scrap metal dealers to maintain accurate records would help the police identify the criminals supplying stolen cables to the scrap metal industry. Greater accuracy could be achieved by requiring sellers to provide proof of identity before any transaction could proceed and we welcome the British Transport Police's trials of such measures. To help with their work, the British Transport Police needs extra powers to enable its officers to enter and inspect scrap metal yards, regardless of whether or not they are registered. In addition, new offences such as aggravated trespass on the railway would increase the penalties associated with this crime.
These measures to help stop cable theft require urgent legislative change. Existing legislation regulating the scrap metal industry is outdated and reform of the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 1964 is necessary to improve identification of sellers, increase police powers and introduce new offences. The Government should bring forward proposals for reform of this legislation to make regulation of the scrap metal industry more effective. The damage to transport networks, passenger experience and the broader economy from cable theft requires this action.
|
