Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We need immediate Government action to reform the way we recycle plastic
3 min read
The Government have promised a series of reforms for the recycling of plastics, but the new system will not come into effect until 2023 - poor recycling rates must improve sooner, writes Baroness Neville-Rolfe.
Since I first started drawing attention in Parliament in 2017 to the absurdities of recycling, especially of plastics, I have been amazed by the support I have received. The remarkable differences in recycling rules between adjacent authorities seem to engage people of all ages and opinions – a win/win therefore for politicians.
So why has so little happened?
The good news is that the Government have promised action in a series of reforms ‘for immediate priority’.
Local authorities will in future have to collect the same core materials for recycling and, in the case of plastic, this will comprise through a plastic bottles including clear drinks and milk containers, detergent, shampoo and cleaning products as well as plastic tubs and trays. There is still a row going on about food and drink cartons, plastic bags and film.
But what is so disappointing is that the intention is that the new system will not come in until 2023.
It reminds me of the road improvements past Stonehenge, another popular and ever delayed cause. That is why I will continue to press the Government in a Parliamentary Question, and during the passage of the Environment Bill, to make this change in 2020.
The other gap is information and engagement.
We need to get the public behind us to improve our poor recycling rates. We need plastics to be labelled as recyclable in an attractive way. And we need uniform information sent to households, businesses and schools on the new rules.
Much can be achieved by clarity, simplicity and clear well communicated information. We need more of that in the nooks and crannies of Government.
My cameo on recycling is part of a wider campaign on plastics. They are miraculous, but most of them do not degrade naturally and are littering the countryside and oceans with horrific consequences.
Plastic is piling up in the environment at an alarming and indestructible rate.
Over 8 billion tonnes of plastic have been produced worldwide to date and 6 billion tonnes are still present in the environment. So we need international action, R&D into bio-degradeable substitutes and consumer engagement.
And it is on this final point where I begin to see some hope. More and more of us use recycled plastic cups and one authority gives vouchers for reusable nappies, which save a fortune as well as the planet. More shops are introducing refilling stations for everything from beans to washing up liquid. Loop collaborates with Unilever to deliver products in reusable containers which can be refilled. Black unrecyclable trays are disappearing. Communities are plogging – giving schoolchildren bags and pick up sticks to clean parks as they rush about. Second hand clothes and toys are becoming fashionable.
The will is there in many areas, but Government and interest groups are spinning things out.
My plea today is for early action.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe is a Conservative member of the House of Lords.
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