The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has welcomed the government’s plans to guarantee the strategic placement of return points in its proposed deposit return scheme for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The new scheme, which is intended to come into force in October 2025, aims to significantly reduce the number of bottles, cans and other materials in scope being thrown away, with a target of 85 per cent litter reduction in the three years after the scheme is introduced.
The materials in scope of the scheme will differ slightly depending on which country you are in. For England and Northern Ireland, PET bottles, steel and aluminium cans are included in the scheme, while in Wales glass is also included. In all countries, the scheme will include containers ranging in size from 50ml to 3 litres.
ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “We welcome the Government’s ambition to introduce a workable deposit return scheme for retailers, consumers and the wider industry. It is essential that the scheme is inter-operable across the UK, and we must learn the lessons from the introduction of the Scottish DRS to ensure that the scheme in England, Wales and NI is both effective and sustainable. The Government’s timeline of 2025 is ambitious given the planned appointment of a Deposit Management Organisation in 2024, but we are committed to working with the Government, retailers and suppliers to introduce a scheme that works for everyone.”
The Federation of Independent Retailers (the Fed) has also welcomed the announcement of details from the UK government regarding DRS for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Separate schemes for Scotland and the Republic of Ireland are due to start on August 16 this year and February 1, 2024, respectively.
Through DRS, consumers will pay an additional 20p when they purchase a drink in a single-use container. This is redeemed when they take the container back to a return point operator, Fed said.
The Fed hopes to work closely with the management organisation to ensure the voice of the independent retailer is heard.
The Fed’s National President Jason Birks said: “We are happy to see the outcome of the consultation has favoured DRS.
“As a federation that has always been supportive of DRS, we are looking forward to engaging with the scheme operators to ensure a successful outcome for our members, many of whose stores will be actively involved.
“It is important that independent retailers are included in discussions, as they are vital return point operators. The Fed will continue to monitor DRS as it progresses and will update its members accordingly.”
The value of the deposit will be set by a yet to be appointed Deposit Management Organisation (DMO). In the government’s consultation response, it is made clear that the DMO will be ‘obligated to consider the strategic placement of return points, to ensure an accessible and comprehensive network of return points.
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