Environmental campaigners have urged the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) to prioritise introducing a “comprehensive” deposit return scheme.
Speaking at a Nature 2030 and Keep Wales Tidy Parliamentary event with environmental leaders, Liberal Democrats House of Lords Defra Spokesperson Baroness Cathy Bakewell said it was “essential” the deposit return scheme (DRS) was in place by 2027.
Baroness Cathy Bakewell, said: “Recycling was in every part of the main party manifestos. It therefore should be easy to get consensus across Parliament.
“Businesses are briefing that various elements of the government’s current approach do not fit what they want. It is essential that the deposit return scheme is in place by 2027.”
DRSs operate in more than 40 countries and see a small charge applied to everyday beverage containers which is refunded when the item is recycled in a bottle bank.
The previous Conservative government was criticised by environmental campaigners after the scheme’s introduction was delayed until 2027.
In April 2024, ministers confirmed their intention to exclude glass from the scheme. The Scottish and Welsh governments had initially set out to include glass within their DRSs.
Both the environment and industry can no longer afford further delays and disruption to a scheme that should have come in years ago.
Research from MPs and Keep Britain Tidy has found that 76% of the British public believe glass should be included in the proposed recycling initiative.
The charity argued that the only way to ensure adequate protections for the environment and wildlife is to adopt a wide-ranging DRS that includes glass and plastic bottles alongside metal cans.
According to research by Keep Britain Tidy, more than two million pieces of litter are dropped every day in the UK, which costs taxpayers over £1 billion annually to clean up.
Owen Derbyshire, Chief Executive of Keep Wales Tidy, commented: “To tackle the waste crisis, we need ultimately need strength and certainty from government. Labour has the clear opportunity with its historic majority to fix the mess we have been left by the previous government on DRS.
“Both the environment and industry can no longer afford further delays and disruption to a scheme that should have come in years ago.
“With building a circular economy as one of Defra’s stated priorities, I urge the Secretary of State Steve Reed MP, to work with the devolved administrations to implement a DRS with plastic, glass and metal containers included in 2027 – we must get back on track in delivering a circular economy, Labour must deliver an effective deposit return scheme.”
