Warrington plaque outrage: Why metal theft is a growing problem

Calls to ensure laws concerning the sale of scrap metal are tightened gathered momentum today after a plaque commemorating two children killed in an IRA bombing was stolen by thieves in Warrington.

The memorial paid tribute to three-year-old Johnathan Bell and 12-year-old Tim Parry, who both died in the 1993 IRA bomb attack on the Cheshire town.

The theft of the plaque comes just a day after a huge haul of stolen metal was recovered from a London scrap dealer’s yard.  The collection, seized by the Met Police, included hundreds of memorial plaques, a statue of Christ and an ornamental Chinese dragon.

Metal theft is a crime that is on the rise: figures suggest the number of thefts has doubled in the last five years at an estimated annual cost to the economy of £770m. This spike comes as the price of copper has risen to more than £5,000 a tonne – double what it was worth in 2009.

Tim Parry’s father, Colin, told the Daily Mail: "It is remarkable the lengths that some people will go to make some cash and it is one of those crimes that is so off the scale that it is disgusting.

"It makes me feel utter disgust and it is reprehensible that someone should disfigure what is a memorial to two young boys and see it as something they can make money from without any consideration for the families who lost loved ones. It beggars belief that people can be so heartless and I don't expect that they have any conscience.”

While memorial plaques are being targeted, train lines are also being hit. Theft of copper wiring on the network cost the taxpayer more than £18.3m last year, a figure that jumped from £16.4m the year before. Rail passengers further suffer from delays, with more than 5,700 hours of disruptions last year caused by repairs being carried out as a result of copper thefts.

As part of the 1964 Scrap Metal Dealers Act, scrap yard owners are required to keep a clear record of each piece of scrap metal received, with the seller’s full name and address included on every deal. Much of the dispute surrounding the way in which the trade is currently conducted surrounds payment methods from buyer to seller, which can currently still be carried out cash in hand.

This could be set to change, however, with Home Secretary Theresa May proposing back in January an end to cash transactions that make it easier to engage in “anonymous, low-risk transactions”. A petition to introduce a ban on cash deals has also been met with huge support, with just under 60,000 signatures so far.

However, the move has not been welcomed by the British Metals Recycling Association, who has said that instead, a comprehensive overhaul of the 1964 Scrap Metal Dealers Act is needed.

“[Our] smallest members, who make up nearly 30% of our membership, are under real threat of survival as a direct result of new legislation which will ban scrap metal dealers from paying cash for scrap,” said British Metals Recycling Association director general, Ian Hetherington.

“The legislation contains a number of loopholes and weaknesses which will allow scrap metal to continue being traded for cash. It will severely damage those metals recyclers operating within the law”.