Moving To A Circular Economy, Reducing Waste And Improving Recycling

EDM number 256 in 2014-15, proposed by Caroline Lucas on 14/07/2014.
Categorised under the topic of Waste management.

That this House believes that moving to a zero-waste, circular economy will deliver great economic and environmental benefits to the UK including job creation, reduced dependence on imported resources, protection of the UK's air, water, land, sea, rivers and green spaces and a reduction in carbon emissions; broadly welcomes the European Commission document, Towards a Circular Economy, published on 2 July 2014, whilst reiterating the importance of the waste hierarchy and the need to prioritise the reduction of resource consumption in absolute terms, waste prevention, reuse and then recycling; calls on the Government to embrace the proposed 70 per cent recycling target by 2030 and landfill ban for recyclable waste by 2025 as steps in the right direction, but to go further by supporting a ban on incineration as well as landfill of recyclable and compostable waste by 2020; notes that the zero waste plans of Wales and Scotland already include targets and policies to recycle 70 per cent of waste by 2025; further believes that England can do equally as well; further calls on Ministers to provide the necessary funds and support to enable local authorities to improve infrastructure for collection, reuse and re-processing; further notes proposals to allow local authorities to keep landfill tax receipts; and urges Ministers to push for design standards to make products longer lasting and easier to repair, including through extending the Ecodesign Directive to include resource efficiency.

This motion has been signed by a total of 20 MPs.