So, after 14 years we have a new government, but what will that mean for the waste industry?
In my last blog I mentioned that I was disappointed in the details within the Labour manifesto, which had very little reference to waste and resources. Since coming into power, the Labour Party has announced its five key DEFRA priorities, one of which is to move Britain to a zero waste economy. They aim to achieve this by 2050.
Along with our other stakeholders within the waste management industry, LARAC intends to fully engage with the new Government, and in alignment with those stakeholders will urge the Government to implement the long-delayed waste policies both under the Collection and Packaging Reforms and others outside of this.
For years, LARAC and others have been emphasising to DEFRA the importance of the need for clarity around the details of the reforms in order for Local Authorities to plan and prepare for what are the biggest changes within our industry for over 25 years.
Although we now have some more specific details, there are still many unanswered questions, alongside some key lobbying points. DEFRA needs to provide further information on issues such as; transitional and ongoing New Burdens funding for food waste services under Simpler Recycling, metrics for the measurement of service effectiveness under EPR and arrangements for the implementation of the DRS, to name but a few.
With regards to lobbying points, LARAC will be continuing to oppose the current policy stance on residual waste collections. We will be arguing that each individual Local Authority should be able to implement the frequency collection that is best suited for their area, and should not be discouraged from introducing 3 or 4 weekly collections if they feel that this is applicable. Evidence shows that restricting residual waste is one of the main drivers for increasing recycling rates.
Of course, its not all about recycling, and it will be interesting to see what the new Government’s stance will be in supporting the Circular Economy to reduce waste, reuse resources and move materials further up the waste hierarchy.
There is much to be done and we are planning to engage with DEFRA as soon as possible to encourage them to implement policy reforms, reassess the current policy on residual waste and understand their position on the Circular Economy.
Lets hope that the new Government will understand the importance of these issues and work with us and our industry colleagues to move forwards with this agenda.
