Steve Double, Member of Parliament for St Austell and Newquay, has urged the Secretary of State for the Environment to act on plastic bottle deposit return scheme following an announcement by the Government that one would be considered earlier this week.
Speaking in Parliament during Leader of the House Questions, Steve said:
“The Leader of the House will be aware of the looming crisis involving the amount of plastic entering our seas and oceans. We are quickly getting to the point where there will be more plastic than fish in the sea. In the light of that, I warmly welcomed the comment by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs that the Government are now considering introducing a plastic bottle deposit return scheme, but can we have a statement from the Secretary of State, so we can discuss and indeed promote that scheme in the Chamber?”
In reply, the Rt Hon Andrea Leadsom MP, Leader of the House, said:
“As my hon. Friend will know, I am passionately concerned about that issue. I was delighted with the results of the consultation on the banning of microbeads in face wash and other products and with the results of our litter strategy, which looks at what else we can do to eradicate plastics from our oceans. Eighty per cent. of the plastics that end up in the ocean come from the land, and it is important that we deal with litter on the land as well. I am sure that the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will be keen to do just that, and that he will come to the House in due course when he has something clear to say.”
Speaking after the debate, Steve said:
“As Chairman of the Protect our Waves All Party Parliamentary Group, I see Lord Gardiner’s announcement earlier this week that the Government is to have a full and proper look at the impacts and benefits of different types of deposit and reward-and-return schemes for drinks bottles as a welcome step forward.”
“Through the APPG Protect our Waves we have lobbied the Government to take action, including my Question in Parliament today, and I am pleased that we have raised the profile of this important issue and started a big conversation over what needs to happen next.”
“We clearly need to take responsibility for the huge numbers of single use plastic bottles, straws and related items that end up polluting our marine environments in vast numbers and it is for groups such as Surfers Against Sewage to champion the cause in working with the Government to look at a full range of ideas on how to reduce their use.”
“As I have repeatedly set out, I believe a bottle deposit scheme, a bottom-up movement enabling the consumer to participate direct in managing waste disposal, is a great idea and preferable to taxing incentives on the manufacturers themselves.”
"On that note it is also good to see Coca Cola taking a first step in combating this issue. There is always more to do though, and we look forward to working with Government and the business sector to attack this marine menace from all sides.”