Lib Dems plan to reduce packaging

11.18.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 19th Sep 2007

Jo Swinson MP proposed packaging changes

The Liberal Democrat Autumn Conference this morning voted in favour of plans to dramatically reduce levels of packaging used in UK shops.

The proposals will force supermarkets to take back unwanted packaging, as well as encourage consumers to re-use plastic bags, in order to cut the amount of waste reaching landfill.

UK households produce 26 million tonnes of waste each year, of which five million tonnes is packaging.

The full text of the motion reads:

Taking Action to Tackle Excess Packaging

Conference notes that:

i) Total domestic waste produced in Britain has increased 21% since 1997, to over 26 million tonnes.

ii) Household recycling in the UK has increased from 6% to 23%, but this has only managed to keep pace with the total increase.

iii) A large proportion of this waste, around 5 million tonnes, is made up of packaging.

iv) Packaging accounts for around 17% of the average household food budget.

v) A Liberal Democrat survey of UK supermarkets found that more than 17 billion plastic bags are given away each year.

vi) The Government has failed to meet the targets for packaging reduction set by EU Directive 94/62/EC, adopted in the UK through the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997.

vii) DEFRA's current policy of issuing Packaging Waste Recovery Notes (PRNs) to producers, to show compliance with recycling regulations, has failed to halt rising levels of packaging.

viii) The Government's Waste Strategy for England, published in May 2007, falls short of presenting effective proposals to tackle excess packaging, particularly over enforcement of current Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations.

Conference notes with concern the need to reduce excess packaging, and welcomes the campaigns of the Women's Institute and The Independent newspaper which have illustrated the broad public consensus that exists over the need to take action.

Conference recognises that:

a) Current Government policies fail to address with sufficient rigour the need to cut the amount of packaging used by both suppliers and sales outlets, including supermarkets.

b) The current Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations do not provide an effective basis for Trading Standards Offices to pursue legal proceedings in cases of excessive packaging.

c) The Courtauld Commitments to reduce excess packaging made by 92% of the UK grocery sector are ineffective, due to their voluntary nature and also because of the lack of a protocol for reporting progress on meeting the targets.

d) Actions taken to date by government and supermarkets have failed to achieve significant levels of reduction in disposable plastic bag use.

Conference therefore calls for:

1. New legislation requiring supermarkets over 250 m2 in size to provide waste points in store, allowing customers to remove and deposit unwanted packaging before leaving the store.

2. Enforcement of excess packaging regulations by Trading Standards Offices to be improved through amendments to strengthen the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations.

3. The creation of a new national body with powers of prosecution to tackle large-scale producers of excess packaging in conjunction with local Trading Standards Offices.

4. Government action to secure commitments from supermarkets to participate in a deposit scheme for plastic carrier bags, charging consumers for bags and refunding them when bags are returned.

5. Encouragement to community initiatives such as the voluntary moratorium on plastic bags by local retailers in the town of Modbury and other schemes to improve their local environment.

6. The introduction of binding packaging reduction targets to be met by producers and retailers, in place of the current voluntary Courtauld Commitments.

7. Effective fiscal incentives to reduce excessive packaging and disposable products, introduced as part of the Liberal Democrat Environmental Incentive Programme.