No date for bottle returns as Wales exits UK scheme

The Welsh government has decided not to join a UK-wide return scheme for bottles and cans and will run its own instead.

While people in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland will get some money back when they return plastic and metal containers to shops from 2027, in Wales that will happen later with no start date currently set.

It comes after Welsh Labour ministers tried and failed to get the Labour UK government to agree to glass being part of Wales' version of the scheme.

Business groups warned it could rise costs and cause confusion, but Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies blamed rules on devolution that were inherited from the previous Conservative government.

The UK government said it will press ahead with the scheme in the rest of the UK, which they said will go live in October 2027.

Welsh Conservatives accused co-operation had "fallen apart" between the two Labour governments in Wales and Westminster.

Under DRS people would be offered money or vouchers for the return of bottles or cans, which could be reused or recycled.

It is not clear when the Wales-only scheme would come into force - officials say the law required for its introduction will not be introduced until the next Senedd term which starts in 2026 and ends in 2030.

All four UK nations had been working together to agree a joint approach.

Wales was the last nation planning to include glass in its deposit return scheme (DRS), following a row where the previous Tory UK government had refused the Scottish government permission to include the material in their version.

The glass industry has also lobbied against the material being included in DRS, preferring it to remain part of household recycling.

British Glass said in 2021 that including glass in DRS schemes can incentivise the use of plastic packaging and can add significant costs. Brewers in Wales had also expressed concerns.

But Welsh ministers argue reuse will use less energy and carbon than recycling.

Under the Internal Market Act 2020, the UK government has to give its permission if a devolved government wants to restrict the trade of goods.

Labour UK circular economy minister Mary Creagh confirmed in October that the deposit scheme in England and Northern Ireland would only include PET plastic, steel and aluminium drinks containers, sticking to the previous Tory policy.

The news had prompted concern from industry bodies.

The British Retail Consortium, in a joint statement with other food, convenience store and packaging groups, said it will "cause confusion among consumers, who may feel cheated by their inability to redeem a deposit".

British Soft Drinks Association Director General, Gavin Partington, said the decision undermined efforts to deliver "an aligned deposit return scheme across the UK".

UK Hospitality Cymru, which represents pubs, restaurants and other businesses in the sector, said the Welsh government's move was "extremely disappointing" and will increase costs.

“Successful deposit return schemes will deliver maximum alignment and interoperability between nations. That unfortunately now looks further away than ever with this decision," it said.

The Marine Conservation Society said it respected the Welsh government's decision, and said its volunteers found drinks-related litter on 96% of Welsh beaches last year.

Keep Wales Today said the delay was frustrating but "ultimately the right one for Wales in the long term".

"With some of the highest recycling rates in the world, adopting a system that excludes glass would not only offer poor value for money but also significantly reduce the scheme’s potential impact."

Recycling rates hit a new record in Wales in October – with two thirds of council-collected waste now recycled, re-used or composted.

Asked by BBC Wales why the Welsh government was unable to persuade Labour UK ministers to introduce glass, Huw Irranca-Davies blamed the previous Westminster administration and the UK Internal Market Act.

"It's because of the legislation that was a bequest of the Conservative Party. They really messed it up here a little bit, I've got to say."

He said it had stymied the ability to manage a UK wide-system.

"It takes something like 1500 degrees to take a smashed piece of glass to heat it up and turn it into something new. The energy costs and the carbon costs for that are significant.

"There are people in the supply chain who are queuing up to say, let us be the ones who come in, reuse those bottles, clean them out, relabel them."

A UK government spokesperson said: “We are committed to delivering a deposit return scheme across England, Northern Ireland and Scotland, which will go live in October 2027.

“We will continue to work collaboratively with the devolved governments and industry to ensure our scheme works for businesses and consumers, while creating thousands of green jobs, driving investment into new infrastructure and moving towards a circular economy.”

Janet Finch-Saunders, Welsh Conservative shadow climate change minister, said: “The Labour Government in Wales insisted it would work in tandem with UK Labour, yet it is clear from this announcement that cooperation has fallen apart within Eluned Morgan’s first 100 days.

“With thousands crossing the Welsh – English border on a daily basis, 16 million people living within 50 miles of the border in England and Wales, and trade between both countries fluid, it is essential that we have the same deposit return scheme."