Lib Dems announce war on plastics

The Liberal Democrats have set out a raft of policies as part of a radical plan to end the UK's addiction to plastic.

These policies include:

• Requiring all retailers to reduce the amount of plastics and non-recyclable packaging they use
• Implementing a deposit return scheme
• Ending plastic exports abroad by 2030

The average UK home produces 1.1kg of waste every day and the duty should be placed on retailers to ensure that this is reduced. The Liberal Democrats would introduce a three-year target obliging retailers and other businesses to make their plastic packaging reusable, recyclable or eliminate it all together, starting with hard-to-recycle items, such as black plastic.

The Liberal Democrats deposit return scheme would include all food and drinks containers - aiming to end the 15 million bottles that are littered, landfilled and incinerated daily in the UK and reducing the £778 million a year we spend clearing plastic litter.

In 2018 the UK exported 0.6 million tonnes of plastic waste. Many countries cannot process all the waste it receives and often it is contaminated or low-grade plastic - it therefore often ends up in landfill, defeating the purpose of exporting it abroad.The Liberal Democrats would ensure any revenue raised from the deposit return scheme and the Government's levy of virgin plastic would be invested in recycling infrastructure in the UK.

In April 2019, Rugby Borough Council passed its Single Use Plastics Policy after Lib Dem Councillors Tim Douglas and Noreen New proposed a motion for the Council to look at ways it can reduce its use of single-use plastics. This included committing to work in greater partnership with local environmental groups and engage with local businesses and residents to help educate about plastic waste.

Commenting, Liberal Democrats Parliamentary Candidate, Rana Das-Gupta, said: