Introducing a Deposit Return Scheme in England, Wales and Northern Ireland

Overview

Moving towards a more circular economy, where resources are kept in use for as long as possible and waste is minimised, and ensuring the UK is a world leader in resource efficiency and resource productivity is a priority for Government[1]. Across the UK, consumers go through an estimated 14 billion plastic drinks bottles, 9 billion drinks cans and 5 billion glass bottles a year. The UK Government for England, the Welsh Government and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland have all made commitments to develop policy which work towards achieving these aims, not least through the development of producer responsibility proposals. Introducing a deposit return scheme forms a key part of these proposals, and has been committed to in various publications by the UK Government for England, the Welsh Government and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland, including the manifesto on which the current UK Government was elected, the Resources and Waste Strategy for England, the Welsh Government’s Beyond Recycling, A strategy to make a circular economy in Wales a reality, and Northern Ireland’s Waste Prevention Plan.

Why your views matter

Responding to the consultation

Please respond to this consultation in one of the following ways:

Online using the Citizen Space consultation hub at Defra https://consult.defra.gov.uk/

For ease of analysis, responses via the Citizen Space platform would be preferred, but alternative options are provided below if required:

By email: drs@defra.gov.uk

In writing to: 

Consultation Coordinator, Defra

2^nd Floor, Foss House, Kings Pool

1-2 Peasholme Green

York

YO1 7PX

Duration

This consultation will run for 10 weeks. This is in line with the Cabinet Office’s ‘Consultation Principles’ which advises Government departments to adopt proportionate consultation procedures. The consultation opens on 24^th March 2021. The consultation closes on 4 June 2021.

Please note, any responses sent by post must have arrived at the above address by the closing date of the consultation (4^th June 2021) to be counted. Unfortunately, any responses received after this date will not be analysed. To ensure your response is included in the analysis, please consider responding online via Citizen Space.

After the consultation

Defra has contracted the Office of Public Management Ltd, trading as Traverse, to support the analysis of responses to this consultation. Traverse will treat personal data they receive and analyse as confidential and will only have access to the response data for the period of the analysis, following which the data will be permanently removed from their system and supplied to Defra. Please find further information in the accompanying Privacy Notice for this consultation.

What happens next

After the consultation

A summary of the responses to this consultation will be published at www.gov.uk/defra

The summary will include a list of names and organisations that responded, but not personal names, addresses or other contact details. However, information provided in response to this consultation document, including personal information, may be subject to publication or release to other parties, or disclosure in accordance with access to information regimes, such as the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Data Protection Act 2018.

If you want information, including personal data that you provide to be treated as confidential, please say so clearly in writing when you send you send your response to the consultation (if responding via mail or email) and explain why you need these details to be kept confidential. If responding via Citizen Space, you will be asked whether you would like your response to be treated as confidential or not. If we receive a request for a disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, we will take full account of your explanation, but due to the law we cannot provide any assurance that confidentiality can be maintained in all circumstances. An automatic confidentiality disclaimer generated by your IT system will not, of itself, be regarded as a confidentiality request.

Defra is the data controller in respect of any personal data that you provide, and Defra’s Personal Information Charter, which gives details of your rights in respect of the handling of personal data, can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-environment-food-ruralaffairs/about/personal-informati on-charter.

Defra has contracted the Office of Public Management Ltd, trading as Traverse, to support the analysis of responses to this consultation. Traverse will treat personal data they receive and analyse as confidential and will only have access to the response data for the period of the analysis, following which the data will be permanently removed from their system and supplied to Defra. Please find further information in the accompanying Privacy Notice for this consultation.

Compliance with the consultation principles

This consultation is being conducted in line with Consultation Principles set out in the Better Regulation Executive guidance, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/consultati on-principles-guidance.

If you have any comments or complaints about the consultation process, please address them to:

By email: consultation.coordinator@defra.gov.uk

Or in writing to:

Consultation Co-ordinator

Defra 2nd Floor,

Foss House,

Kings Pool,

1-2 Peasholme Green,

York,

YO1 7PX.