The government has scrapped plans to require café bosses to recycle throwaway paper cups, saying the money could be better spent elsewhere.
The proposals, which had been inherited from the previous government, would have meant coffee shops with more than 10 employees would have to to provide bins and make recycling arrangements for fibre-based composite cups used by customers.
The plans for dedicated bins has been due to come in this year but was delayed until 2025 to enable sellers to prepare for the introduction of the regulations.
Defra said it had been cancelled because its estimated £52m price tag exceeded the environmental and economic benefits.
The move comes with estimates of coffee cups thrown away each year in the UK at between 2.5 billion and three billion.
A Defra spokesman said: “This government will end our throwaway society and move us to a future where we keep our resources in use for longer and waste is reduced, while accelerating the path to net zero.
“Analysis has shown the mandatory takeback scheme for cups proposed by the previous government would not have the intended impact on boosting recycling rates and reducing litter.
“This decision will allow businesses to focus on implementing our other collection and packaging reforms, which will support 21,000 jobs and stimulate more than £10bn of investment in recycling capability during the next decade.”
Scotland recently closed a consultation on its own scheme, which included introducing a charge of around 25p on all single-use cups.
David Gudgeon, head of external affairs at Reconomy Connect, said: “With more than three billion cups going to waste every year, according to research by Reconomy, and the current legislative landscape being fragmented, we had been anticipating the planned introduction of the mandatory takeback scheme to boost the recycling rates of cups and reduce waste.
“This announcement is therefore somewhat surprising, and we look forward to engaging with Defra to understand their analysis that led to this decision.
“Given this policy isn’t going to progress, the responsibility will now fall back to businesses and the waste industry, who will need to work more closely together to come up with innovative solutions to build on the industry’s progress to date, lift recycling rates and create a more circular and sustainable future for our communities.”
No comments yet