The 2019 UK General Election has been touted as the most important in a generation. We look at what the leading parties' manifestos say about plastic and waste

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The vote for UK's General Election will take place on 12 December 2019 (Credit: Pixabay)

The UK’s 2019 General Election campaign is entering its final phase, with the political parties revealing their manifestos and outlining pledges on policy and funding.

Whether it’s how to deal with Brexit, or a battle over the NHS, every policy and announcement is designed to convince the public their plan is best for the future of the nation.

One area that has started to rise up the agenda, is the issue of waste plastics and the lasting impact the material could be having on the plant.

According to polling conducted by market researcher Ipsos MORI, concerns around the environment and climate change is a voting issue for 30% of the electorate, behind only the NHS, Brexit, care and crime.

At the launch of his party’s manifesto, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said that the country could “no longer deny the climate emergency”, while the Conservatives have pledged to see the country carbon neutral by 2050.

From deposit return schemes to banning waste exports to non-Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, we look at how some of UK’s leading political parties are looking to tackle plastic and the waste infrastructure.

Clockwise from top left: Boris Johnson, Conservative Party leader; Jeremy Corbyn, Labour Party leader; Jonathan Bartley, Green Party co-leader; Jo Swinson, Liberal Democrat leader (Credit: Flickr, Chatham House) (Credit: Flickr, Liberal Democrats https://www.flickr.com/photos/libdems/)

 

How do the major UK parties intend to tackle the plastics problem

Whether it’s David Attenborough’s Blue Planet II documentary series displaying the problem of the material in our oceans or Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s visit to Malaysia’s waste dumping grounds, plastic has become a hot button issue for voters in the UK.

According to an April 2019 poll by market researcher YouGov, eight in 10 UK consumers are trying to reduce the amount of plastic waste they use, with half willing to pay higher prices for eco-friendly packaging.

The study also shows 46% of people feel guilty about the amount of plastic they use, motivating them to consider changes in their behaviour.

By far the biggest commitment to tackling plastic is from the Greens, which said it would ban the production of single-use plastics for use in packaging alongside investing in research and development to find alternatives.

election 2019 manifestos waste
According to an April 2019 poll by market researcher YouGov, eight in 10 consumers in the UK are trying to reduce the amount of plastic waste they use (Credit: Pixabay)

Alongside this, the party also wants to extend the tax on plastic bags to cover plastic bottles, single-use plastics and microplastics.

The Conservative manifesto said the party would introduce a levy to increase the proportion of recyclable plastics in packaging and establish a £500m ($644m) Blue Planet Fund to protect the oceans from plastic pollution, while also tackling warming seas and overfishing

Redevelopment is on the agenda for Labour, with the party stating it will invest in a new plastics remanufacturing industry, which it says will create thousands of jobs and end the exportation of this type of waste.

The Liberal Democrats plan to ban all non-essential, non-recyclable single-use plastics within three years and initiate negotiations in the UN for a legally binding international treaty on plastics reduction.

Labour, the Greens and the Liberal Democrats are all also looking to reduce food waste.

Trade association the Foodservice Packaging Association’s executive director, Martin Kersh, believes a wider approach tackling all forms of packaging waste is needed.

He said: “Action on plastics and reducing food waste are proposed, but with many examples of the former reducing the latter, a more holistic approach taking into account all materials is needed.”

 

How the parties plan to deal with waste management

According to the latest figures (2017), the UK’s household recycling rate was at 45.7%, with the country due to hit the EU target of at least 50% by 2020.

Within the UK nations, Wales recorded the highest rate of 57.6%.

Despite this, research conducted by cardboard packaging company DS Smith, says the UK will miss its recycling goals by more than a decade.

The European Commission set targets four years ago, stating that at least 65% of municipal waste should be recycled by 2035 — a goal DS Smith believes the UK won’t hit until 2048.

To improve waste management, the UK government has conducted consultations with industry investigating how best to improve the system in the country.

Forming part of the UK’s Environment Bill, it includes introducing a deposit return scheme (DRS) — which involves placing a small fee on a plastic bottle which is then given back when disposing of the waste using a DRS bottle bin.

DRS is a policy supported by the Conservatives, Labour, the Greens and the Liberal Democrats.

The three parties also back the introduction of extended producer responsibility (EPR), where manufacturers pay for the cost of disposal, with the Greens and Labour looking to make businesses fund the full disposal of waste.

election 2019 manifestos waste
All of the UK’s national parties are looking to improve recycling rates in the UK (Credit: Pixabay)

Alongside DRS, Liberal Democrat policies on waste management include requiring all retailers reduce the amount of plastics and non-recyclable packaging they use, establish a statutory waste recycling target of 70% in England and strengthen incentives to reduce packaging and waste sent landfill or incineration.

The Conservatives aim to “crackdown” on waste and carelessness destroying the natural environment by increasing penalties for fly-tipping — making those on community sentences clean-up the local parks and streets.

Labour hopes the introduction of EPR will encourage more sustainable design, with the party also looking to develop three new recyclable steel plants in regions where the material has a history in the manufacturing sector.

The Greens will look to improve the infrastructure, which will allow large corporations and individuals to recycle close to 100% of the items they use.

 

What the major parties are saying about plastic waste exportation

Poignantly highlighted in the BBC’s War on Plastics documentary series, plastic waste exports from the UK, along with other western countries including Australia and the US, are still prevalent.

Figures from the Environment Agency show that from the 12 months to October 2018, 611,000 tonnes of the nation’s recovered plastic packaging was exported and sorted in other countries.

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The Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and the Brexit Party are all looking to ban waste exporting (Credit: Pixabay)

Between November 2017 and October 2018, the UK exported more than 100,000 tonnes of plastic to Malaysia.

It was recently announced by the UK’s High Commission in Malaysia that 42 containers of plastic waste illegally shipped to the country would be returned.

The Liberal Democrats’ manifesto announced its “war on plastics”, which would see the party ban the export of all plastic waste by 2030.

In its “contract with the people,” the Brexit Party announced it would make it illegal for any waste from the UK to be exported.

The Conservative Party said it would ban the export of plastic waste to all non-OECD countries.

To work out a timeframe for achieving this, the party would consult with industry, non-governmental organisations and local councils.

Kersh said that, while he agrees with the export ban, an expansion in waste collection would be needed.

He said: “Binding targets, independent offices to protect the environment, the majority of energy from renewables, deposits on packaging, extended producer responsibility and the ending of plastic waste exports to non-OECD nations are pretty much on offer from all.

“The latter is certainly a policy we endorse wholeheartedly, though of course to enable this to happen a huge expansion in waste collection, sorting and reprocessing is needed and no party has explicitly said they are going to make this happen.

“No surprise because promising such facilities in your neighbourhood isn’t exactly a vote winner, unlike wind turbines in the sea which are nicely tucked out of the way.”