ACS has welcomed the Government’s plans to guarantee the strategic placement of return points in its proposed deposit return scheme for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The new scheme, which is intended to come into force in October 2025, aims to significantly reduce the number of bottles, cans and other materials in scope being thrown away, with a target of 85% litter reduction in the three years after the scheme is introduced.
The materials in scope of the scheme will differ slightly depending on which country you are in. For England and Northern Ireland, PET bottles, steel and aluminium cans are included in the scheme, while in Wales glass is also included. In all countries, the scheme will include containers ranging in size from 50ml to 3 litres.
The value of the deposit will be set by a yet to be appointment Deposit Management Organisation (DMO). In the Government’s consultation response, it is made clear that the DMO will be ‘obligated to consider the strategic placement of return points, to ensure an accessible and comprehensive network of return points.’
ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “We welcome the Government’s ambition to introduce a workable deposit return scheme for retailers, consumers and the wider industry. It is essential that the scheme is inter-operable across the UK, and we must learn the lessons from the introduction of the Scottish DRS to ensure that the scheme in England, Wales and NI is both effective and sustainable. The Government’s timeline of 2025 is ambitious given the planned appointment of a Deposit Management Organisation in 2024, but we are committed to working with the Government, retailers and suppliers to introduce a scheme that works for everyone.”
Scotland is set to introduce its deposit return scheme in August this year, with a deposit amount set at 20p and both manual returns and reverse vending machines being used to deliver the scheme.
The Government’s full consultation response is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1130296/DRS_Government_response_Jan_2023.pdf
