Welsh Government presses ahead with plans to include glass in deposit return scheme

Emily Price 

Concerns have been raised over the continued inclusion of glass in the Welsh Government's plans for a deposit return scheme.

Talks had been ongoing since last year between UK ministers and devolved administrations to establish initiatives that could work with one another.

The schemes will see customers pay a small deposit on top of the price of an item, which is refunded when they return the container to a collection point.

It aims to provide a financial incentive for people to recycle items, in turn reducing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

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Litter

The previous UK Government ruled that glass would not be included in its own deposit return scheme for England.

The justification for Conservative Government's decision was that the UK consumes and litters more plastic bottles and drink cans than glass bottles.

Unlike plastic, which degrades every time it is recycled, glass can be recycled an unlimited number of times without losing quality.

The majority of deposit return schemes in the world today include glass.

The Welsh Government has maintained throughout talks that it intends to include glass bottles in its own initiative.

But this plan has been heavily criticised by some members of Wales’ brewing and hospitality sectors.

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Challenges

Welsh ministers have also faced challenges over how the scheme will be managed because it relates to the regulation of the sale of goods and therefore could be affected by the UK Internal Market Act 2020.

This means there is a possibility that any Welsh requirements for identifying in-scope containers - like a barcode - might not be enforced on goods originating in the rest of the UK

In a written statement this week, Deputy First Minister And Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies confirmed that plans to include glass in Wales' deposit return scheme will go ahead.

He said: "I have listened carefully to industry’s concerns about the risks that come about as a consequence of there no longer being a single approach that works for the whole of the UK.

"This is not a situation of the Welsh Government’s making, as it stems directly from decisions taken by the previous UK Government to depart from the agreed approach of a DRS that included glass.

"I recognise however the importance of taking action to avoid unintended consequences and take these issues seriously."

Fragmented

He added: "Glass remains in scope of our scheme, as this means that in Wales, we will be able to begin to roll-out reuse as a core part of the scheme.

"It also means we can continue to improve glass recycling against our baseline performance - by improving on the go recycling - whilst tackling the littering of all forms of drinks containers."

However, the Welsh Conservatives say the continued inclusion of glass risks a fragmented UK-wide system.

Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and the Environment, Janet Finch-Saunders MS, said: "While we welcome the accelerated timetable to align partially with the rest of the UK, keeping glass within the scheme’s scope means the Welsh Labour Government's approach remains out of step and disjointed with the UK Government.

 "It can be no coincidence that when the Conservatives were in Government at Westminster, Labour in Wales insisted on being different for the sake of it, now they’re suddenly open to compromise.

 "The Welsh Conservatives have been calling for the implementation of a DRS since 2016, taking inspiration from schemes around the world and with thousands crossing the Welsh – English border on a daily basis and with trade between both nations fluid, having a consistent and aligned scheme is essential."

England's deposit return scheme is scheduled to be rolled out in October 2027.

Irranca-Davies said that industries had indicated that if a scheme was introduced in other parts of the UK before Wales it would carry the greater risks of "operational complexity and associated costs".

For that reason, the Welsh Government will accelerate its scheme implementation timetable to align with the rest of the UK.