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The government is to planning to set legally binding recycling and waste targets under its Environment Bill to help the country “build back greener” once the Covid-19 pandemic has passed. Waste management-related targets will look to increase resource productivity and cut the amount of residual waste and plastic pollution generated in the UK, in a…
The recycling and waste management sector has generally responded positively to publication of the Environment Bill subsequent to it being announced in the Queen’s Speech in October. Most commentators welcomed the Bill although there were calls to make sure it progressed and, in particular, delivered fully on the proposal for an Office for Environmental Protection….
AssetCare, our IT data destruction division, recently hosted a seminar on the impact of the forthcoming General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The seminar was to bring clarity as to how we can all stay on the right side of the law and reduce risk whilst being pragmatic as to the implementation and ongoing requirements of…
The Treasury has dismissed accusations from a Parliamentary committee that it has ‘run roughshod’ over Defra’s environmental policy objectives. Instead, the Treasury has reasoned that ‘trade-offs’ in departmental expenditure have been necessary. The comments came in a formal response to criticisms from the Environmental Audit Committee which is chaired by Labour’s Mary Creagh. And, the…
Discussion of a possible deposit scheme for drinks bottles in Scotland has prompted discussion in England and Wales. The backers of a deposit scheme in Scotland have been heartened by the decision of Coca Cola to say it would favour a Scottish trial of such a system. In England, there have been calls for a…
A long-running wrangle over VAT and the fact that councils don’t have to charge for their commercial waste services has moved a step further with a court ruling in favour of local authorities. In September, a High Court Judge upheld an HMRC ruling that councils carrying out trade waste collections should not be liable to…
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has come under strong pressure from leaders within the waste management sector over a perceived lack of interest and support for the waste management sector. Steve Lee, the Chief Executive of the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM), was one of the most vocal critics. Responding to…
Businesses have to conform to a Duty of Care with regard to their waste. However, while most businesses handle their waste correctly, there is still a large number who may be breaching regulations either inadvertently or deliberately. Now, a project aimed at raising the profile of the ‘Duty of Care’ among waste producing businesses is…
Departmental day-to-day spending is to be reduced by 15% under plans outlined by Chancellor George Osborne in his spending review announced on 25 November 2015. The spending review was published following the Chancellor’s speech to Parliament, in which he laid out his plans for government spending over the next five years. Day-to-day spending by departments…
An important package of proposed measures from the European Commission is being unveiled in December which will set the pace for environmental and recycling measures in Europe over the coming years. It will still need to be discussed by EU Member States but will give increased recycling targets for municipalities and also encourage the better…
