The Welsh Government has failed to appoint a Deposit Management Organisation (DMO) for the operation of its deposit return scheme in Wales, with less than 18 months to go until the scheme is scheduled to go live.
Exchange for Change, who have already been appointed to lead the administration of the deposit return scheme in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, were the only applicant to oversee operational design and delivery of the scheme in Wales, but that application was refused by the Welsh Government just weeks ahead of the Welsh Elections in May.
ACS has warned that the failure to appoint a DMO will make it extremely difficult to launch a successful deposit return scheme in October 2027 in Wales.
ACS chief executive Ed Woodall said: “We know from over a decade of working on the introduction of DRS in the UK that it takes time to get the details right. This is a change that requires major infrastructure and logistics, new facilities in hundreds of stores, and strategic mapping of return points across the country. It is extremely concerning to see the Welsh Government fail to make progress on the appointment of the scheme administrator, especially as their proposed scheme is more complex and more costly than that coming into force in the rest of the UK.
“Retailers in Wales are the ones that are going to have to make this scheme work, but with less than 18 months to go they’re still in the dark about how and if it’s going to be viable. It must a top priority of the parties that form the next Welsh Government to either reconsider their approach on the existing DMO application, or urgently present a suitable alternative for the administration of the scheme.”
ACS has consistently called on the Welsh Government to introduce a scheme that is fully interoperable with the rest of the UK.
ACS has produced guidance for retailers on the operational considerations of DRS in the UK as we know them, which is available here.
