Ministers have announced that they will be attending a meeting in which they will look to overhaul the current rules in relation to scrap metal merchants in an effort to quell the epidemic of cable and other metal thefts.

They are looking into preventing scrap merchants from paying in cash for metals after railways were hit by a spate of thefts that some believe has led to the value of copper increasing in the world market.

The current legislation, the 1964 Scrap Metal Dealers Act, is believed to be outdated in today’s market and the scrap industry in general has come under pressure from a variety of sources over the thefts, prompting the examination.

Representatives from the Treasury, Home Office and the departments of Energy, Environment and Business are to attend the meeting, alongside Transport Minister Norman Baker.