We supported the passage of the Environment Act although, during that process, we expressed concern that, if key targets were not included in the legislation, it could lead to the Government downgrading their ambition. The targets in the various SIs are significantly less ambitious than many would like, suggesting that our fears were correct. As noted by the noble Baroness, Lady Parminter, and my noble friend Lord Watson, the waste reduction target omits major mineral waste from construction, demolition and excavation activities—the majority of waste produced in England. This omission must be rectified if the target is to deliver on its aim of incentivising a circular economy.
The waste reduction aimed for—a 50% reduction on 2019 levels—is not aligned with either the scale of the problem or the potential to reduce resource use, as well as minimising waste and increasing recycling. A 50% reduction on 2019 levels is relatively unambitious. The department does not have the strongest track record in delivering the transition to a circular economy. I am afraid that England has lagged behind other countries in the UK in bringing new schemes on stream, as highlighted by the significant delays to and the watering down of the Government’s deposit return scheme. Scotland has its own scheme, which will launch ahead of Defra’s, and Wales is set to launch its scheme in October 2025. The Explanatory Memorandum notes the Government’s resources and waste strategy, which aims to increase municipal recycling rates to an overall level of 65% and lower the volume of waste going to landfill.
We have seen slippage in performance across much of the UK, although I am proud to say that Wales has outperformed the other UK nations. The recent results from Newport City Council, where I was the leader before joining your Lordships’ House, show a 10% increase in Newport’s recycling performance over a year. Newport is not only the best-performing authority in Wales in terms of recycling but the best-performing city in the whole of the UK. It continues to work hard to meet the Welsh Government’s target of a 70% recycling rate by 2025.
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How has this happened? The waste strategy that we put in place in 2018 aimed to find solutions that work for Newport and ensure that plans are in place for a
preventive and proactive approach that addresses the root causes. Recycling has much to do with behaviour so a clear need for proper communication and engagement with residents was identified, and we put it into practice. Does the Minister accept that there are lessons to learn from the Welsh Government and Newport City Council on how to recycle successfully?
Paragraph 7.5 of the Explanatory Memorandum notes that “significant research” on how to
“reduce raw material consumption and increase resource efficiency”
indicated that
“setting a resource efficiency target would be premature at this stage.”
I ask again how this will be kept under review. Would the Minister expect a target to be in place at the time of the five-year review?
The Explanatory Memorandum further mentions significant public concern around the Government’s approach in this area, with a staggering 99% of responses disagreeing
“with the scope of the residual waste reduction target.”
We understand that it is not possible to please everyone—indeed, sometimes it is not possible to please anyone—but is the Minister at all concerned that the department’s approach to waste does not seem to please anyone?
The SLSC has flagged the concerns raised by Greener UK and the Wildlife and Countryside Link around the exclusion of major mineral wastes—in construction, demolition, excavation and mining, as I said earlier. The department’s response to these concerns is not particularly convincing; it cites work with University College London. Can the Minister perhaps provide further detail on that? When, for example, is that research likely to conclude? The Office for Environmental Protection and environmental NGOs have recommended that the Government develop a target in this area that addresses resource use and the associated environmental impacts of consumption, including embodied carbon, but no such target has been introduced.
Finally, to bring material use in line with planetary boundaries, the Government should set a target to halve resource consumption by 2030. Do they share this ambition?