Lancaster MP asks Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for government help as Supaskips fire bill mounts up

MP for Lancaster and Fleetwood Cat Smith raised the issue in PMQs on Wednesday, saying: “A rogue company has walked away from 13,000 tonnes of hazardous waste in Lancaster.

“It has now been on fire for 10 days with plumes of smoke covering our city.

“Lancaster City Council has been left to pick up the tab – to date spending £262,000.

“Without government intervention this fire will burn for several months.

“Will the Prime Minister support my local council with swift government support?”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “Can I thank the honourable member for raising this incredibly important question.

"I know she has been working alongside my honourable friend the member for Morecambe on this and can I also thank the emergency services in her constituency.

"My understanding is that Lancaster City Council, the Environment Agency, the UK HSA and emergency services are working together to ensure the health risks and the environmental consequences are minimised, but I will ensure the relevant minister understands the absolute urgency of the issue that one has raised and will make sure that she meets with them as soon as possible.”

Responding to the Prime Minister's comments, Cat Smith said: “Fundamentally it's unfair for local residents to pick up the tab for the fire and the company's actions. This now clearly meets the threshold for emergency funding.”

MP Cat Smith provided an update on the incident at the former skip hire building and power station on Port Royal Avenue.

“Given that the materials stored in the warehouse are piled high, and are in essence items thrown in skips over a number of years, I would guess that much of what is in there is unknown from either an environmental or risk perspective, on top of any asbestos concerns at the building itself,’ she said.

“With that in mind, last week I asked the Chief Executive to task the council’s Environmental Health Team/Environment Agency to assess the air quality in order to be able to provide some clarity on the safety of the area which could be passed on to residents and business owners, as well as for agencies who are attending the scene, such as Lancashire Police.”

Ms Smith has been among those calling for action at the former skip hire site, due to concerns over the state of the building, premises and waste, for several months.

Marsh Councillors Mandy Bannon and Gina Dowding said last week: “This was everyone’s worst nightmare – a raging inferno inside a building filled with mixed waste that is surrounded by a residential area and businesses.”

A major incident was declared earlier this year following other fires at the site, and a multi-agency task force the Lancashire Resilience Forum, including the Environment Agency, Lancashire County Council, Lancaster City Council, Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and Lancashire Police, was set up.

Fire crews are continuing to extinguish the fire over a week since the blaze happened in the large former power station which contains over 13,000 tonnes of compacted waste.

The demolition of the outbuildings and the removal of waste from the outer perimeter has been taking place over last weekend.

Pockets of fire have been continuing to smoulder deep within large piles of commercial waste.

The air quality is consistently being measured by Lancaster City Council.

On Thursday, Lancaster City Council announced they would foot the bill for the up to £262,000 cost of demolishing outbuildings on the site, to "improve access for firefighters tackling the blaze".

A1 Supa Skips Ltd went into administration in April 2022 and in November 2022, the Environment Agency announced they had removed their site permit.

*Last Wednesday, a 36-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of arson at the site, and bailed.