Welsh Government to go solo on recycling scheme
The Welsh Government will pursue a separate Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) to the rest of the UK to include glass bottles.
The Welsh Government wants to pursue a DRS for all drinks containers including those made of glass, whereas in England, Northern Ireland and Scotland glass is to be excluded.
While a joint process between the UK and devolved Governments was previously being still pursued, Huw Irranca-Davies MS, Welsh First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, says, 'However, in the time available it has not been possible to address the issues to the operation of devolution caused by the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020, inherited by the UK Government from the previous administration. This unfortunately means that we are not able to proceed with the joint process or notify the WTO in relation to the scheme at this point.'
A DRS works by charging a small deposit to someone purchasing a drink, which is returned to them when the container is returned to a recycling collection point.
A previous statement from the UK Government in April postponed the DRS to 2027. At the time, it published a statement on glass drinks containers, to which the Welsh government had issued a response.
In response to Wales' now withdrawal from the joint UK DRS, the UK Government says that as Wales ranked second in the world for recycling, the Welsh Government is uniquely placed to implement a scheme into a high recycling nation. However, it plans to continue to work in partnership.
The UK DRS is to target the huge amount of polyethylene terephthalate and metal drinks containers on the market, respectively 12 billion and 14 billion cans.
Keep Britiain Tidy 2020 found that 55% of litter by volume was plastic and metal drinks containers.
The DRS will reportedly create around 4,000 new jobs across the UK and will bring investment for infrastructure, says the UK Government, and it expects recycling levels to be boosted for in-scope containers to more than 90% in the third year of operation.
It intends to launch the scheme in October 2027, with regulations in England and Northern Ireland this November, which will progress to appointing Deposit Management Organisations in April 2025.
