Defra resources minister Rory Stewart has repeated his call for an open discussion on waste policy during a speech in London, but offered little hope of any imminent intervention in the market from government.

And, the minister also highlighted the need to get a message about the benefits of recycling over to the public.

Speaking a little under 12 months since his first address to the sector at the CIWM, ESA and Resource Association Conference in June 2015, where he outlined his ambition for the UK to ‘lead the world’ on recycling, the minister returned to the same platform this morning, albeit with a more measured message after a year in office.

Defra resources minister Rory Stewart has repeated his call for an open discussion on waste policy during a speech in London, but offered little hope of any imminent intervention in the market from government.

And, the minister also highlighted the need to get a message about the benefits of recycling over to the public.

Speaking a little under 12 months since his first address to the sector at the CIWM, ESA and Resource Association Conference in June 2015, where he outlined his ambition for the UK to ‘lead the world’ on recycling, the minister returned to the same platform this morning, albeit with a more measured message after a year in office. Admitting that he found himself ‘slightly more ground down’ than a year previously, Mr Stewart said that he had picked up on the importance of listening to industry in that time, repeating his call for discussion between government, industry and other stakeholders on future policy direction.

“The key thing is to work out what a sensible government strategy will be,” the minister commented, adding: “One thing I have always been pleased to do is to sit around a table with you and challenge you to come up with ideas. In the end the government won’t know as much about your sector as you do.”

The minister also outlined what he claimed are the ‘two major challenges’ faced by the waste and resources sector, namely effectively communicating the benefits of recycling to the public and developing ‘practical’ solutions to take the industry forward.

In recent months, industry leaders have called for a greater level of leadership from government, but the minister warned that the government is extremely unlikely to look to policies that have been untested elsewhere.

He cited the example of the government’s plastic bag levy, which had been introduced in Wales and Scotland before Defra opted to approve the measure in England, as an area where the government had examined results in other countries before acting.